How Vicki started working  with IOM as a psychologist

For many, psychology may be just a profession, a study of the mind.  But for Hathaitip or “Vicki” as she is known, it is much more than that. It is a way of life, rooted in listening, cultural understanding, and finding creative ways to help people heal from trauma and rebuild their lives.

Vicki’s journey with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Thailand began in 2013, during one of the region’s most pressing humanitarian emergencies: the Andaman Sea Crisis. Fleeing violence and persecution in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, hundreds of Rohingya, many of them women and unaccompanied children, set out on perilous sea journeys in search of safety in Malaysia.

Hope quickly turned to hardship when overcrowded boats, some carrying up to 300 people, were intercepted before reaching their destination and diverted to Thailand’s southern coast. Some vessels even capsized, leaving behind families shattered by loss.

Many of the survivors were taken to immigration detention centres, while women and children were transferred to local government-run shelters. The high number of arrivals quickly overwhelmed available resources, creating an urgent need for specialized medical, psychological, and social support.

“I began my work with IOM as a psychologist, providing focused care  and counselling to the newly arriving Rohingyas in the Ranong and Phang Nga shelters,” Vicki recalls. “At one point, there were more than 50 women and children in a single shelter, far beyond what it could hold.”

The challenges were immense. “Many of those arriving had endured long, dangerous journeys, family separation, and deep uncertainty. Beyond the language barrier, there were also significant cultural differences that shaped how people coped and expressed distress,” she says.

Vicki quickly realized that her academic and clinical background, while essential, was just one part of what was needed to provide support.

“Without understanding the Rohingya’s cultural background, I could not truly connect with them,” she shares. “Many Rohingya women and children come from deeply rooted cultural and religious traditions that shaped their behaviours, coping mechanisms, and ways of expressing distress. If we ignore these cultural differences, we risk misinterpreting their needs or unintentionally causing more harm,” she adds.

With most of her work focused on supporting women and girl survivors of trafficking and displacement, the cultural sensitivity is central to Vicki’s approach to psychological  counseling.

To help build women’s confidence and improve their mental well-being, IOM introduced art-mediated support groups and empowerment activities in the camps.

“We brought mothers into classrooms with their daughters, held regular empowerment sessions, and offered ongoing counselling,” Vicki says. “When a mother’s mental health improves, her children often thrive too.”