Esther Otieno works as Senior Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Manage with IRC Tanzania. She is based in Kigoma in North-Western Tanzania. This week she tells Ziada and Mary Ann all about her mental health work in Refugee Camps and what motivates and challenges her about it.

They talk about the passion Esther has for her work, the successes she has had in encouraging refugee communities to access mental health services and how she deals with challenges and looks after herself in her work.

Esther works with IRC Tanzania: https://www.rescue-uk.org/country/tanzania

Her project runs 5 wellness centres which have, to date, carried out over 14,000 consultations and mental health outreach staff working with the project have visited over 6000 homes to provide information about mental health and support the development of resilience and coping mechanisms.  The project has reached over 50,000 people in the community and made them aware of the mental health services and the existing referral pathways through outreach and awareness activities.