Staff

Hans te Brake has been working for Impact since September 2007 as a senior policy worker for research and development.
His tasks include gathering scientific knowledge and ensuring it is retained and made available for people in the field by keeping in touch with the literature relating to psychosocial care.
Hans believes it is crucial to internationally distribute the knowledge Impact has gathered , and where possible, to evaluate existing practices. By placing greater emphasis on international scientific publications, Impact will not only be collating the knowledge, but the (practical) experience gained will also be disseminated within the scientific community. Thereby, the circle is made complete.
Hans te Brake studied social psychology at the University of Amsterdam. He completed his PhD at the University of Amsterdam/Academisch Centrum Tandheelkunde (Academic Centre for Dentistry Amsterdam) with a dissertation entitled 'Burnout and job engagement in dentistry'. Between 2004 and 2007, he worked as a researcher at NIVEL (Netherlands Institute for Health Services Research) in Utrecht, where he carried out research on the workload of medical services in Dutch prisons and was a member of the scientific staff of the Netherlands Information Network of General Practice (LINH).

+31(0)20 6601903
h.tebrake@impact.arq.org

Jorien joined Impact in March 2011, working on the project ‘arranging commemoration’. Commemoration of a disaster is a valuable component of processes of grief. Ritual, community, places and monuments are important aspects of commemoration ceremonies, which have to be realized as a combined action of the proper authorities and the persons concerned. Listening to victims, surviving relatives and policy makers, and studying relevant literature and commemoration ceremonies that already took place, Jorien formulates advices and background information for governments to organize ceremonies that meet a range of perspectives, desires and expectations.
Jorien obtained her masters degree in Communication and Information Sciences (University of Groningen) and wrote a thesis on rooms of silence in the public sphere at the Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies of that same university, which she defended in 2010. In the project in question, she’s able to use and extend her knowledge and experience on themes like ritual, spaces, religiosity and commemoration.

+31(0)20 6601908
j.holsappel@impact.arq.org

Since the fall of 2011 Nils works as a policy advisor at Impact. What motivates him particularly is being able to deliver a thoroughly researched product that applies to the day to day reality of the client. The result he strives for is practice orientated and scientifically sound research that has clear implications for the stakeholders. Amongst other things, Nils takes part in the development of a research programme for the prevention of aggression and he is the project leader for the blueprint for psychosocial care in the Dutch police force. Nils studied Governance and Organisational Science at the University of Utrecht. His Research Master thesis focused on the challenges faced by judges who try to manage other judges, with particular emphasis on stress development for managers. From early 2009 to late 2011 Nils worked as a researcher and consultant for the policy consultancy firm Andersson Elffers Felix (AEF). Research and consultancy with a clear impact on society, that is what motivated him at AEF. He was particularly active in the field of justice and security. For example, he studied what number of police officers suffer from work related stress and what costs are associated with this kind of stress. The contact with the subjects of stress, coping and trauma, combined with the possibility of more in depth research, were determining factors for his transition to Impact.

+31(0)20 6601904
n.burger@impact.arq.org

Magda Rooze studied developmental psychology and obtained a master's degree in business administration from Kingston University London/Haarlem. The combination of content and organisation is still the underlying motive in her work. So as director of Impact, she feels that she has found her niche. Post-disaster care calls for professional organisation of knowledge, with a strong focus on the subject, since otherwise it soon disappears from the political agenda. This is a splendid mission for Impact. So together with a first-rate team of professionals, she works hard to collect and disseminate knowledge, to draw up good post-disaster plans, and to support the relevant networks. Impact is available for advice on all stages of a disaster, from preparation to aftercare. Magda Rooze believes in high-quality products and services, open communication, and direct contact with the target group for which Impact works.

+31(0)20 6601902
m.rooze@impact.arq.org

Since February 2011 Barbara de Groot is working for Impact as secretary/project assistant. Working within a small professional organisation with a lot of expertise and with an international character appeals to her very much. She has working experience in many fields, including the health sector. That’s why the subject of psychosocial care attracts her also in working for Impact. Furthermore she feels happy in a supporting role. Therefore she will give enthousiastic assistance to the interesting projects within Impact, on both a national and international level.

+31(0)20 6601909
b.degroot@impact.arq.org

With culture as her portfolio, Josée Netten is putting culture-sensitive post-disaster psychosocial care on the map. The relevant players - from relief workers to policymakers - receive support in the form of knowledge transfer in various ways, such as presentations, reports and articles. Because all post-disaster psychosocial care is, by definition, cross-cultural psychosocial care. Furthermore, previous experience of disasters worldwide has made it clear that minority groups prove to be vulnerable groups. Culturally competent post-disaster psychosocial relief work makes it possible to work more effectively and to offer disaster victims help of higher quality, with which they can identify. Everybody benefits from this, and it provides more satisfaction and less frustration. Josée Netten is a psychologist and cultural anthropologist, who has acquired a great deal of cross-cultural experience in Asia, Africa and Europe. She specialises in cross-cultural mourning customs. Having worked in Ethiopia and on a team working with refugees in the Netherlands, she has experience of the (psycho)trauma and mental health dimension in a cultural context.
For Impact, Josée engages, in the broadest sense, with diverse aspects of culture-sensitive post-disaster psychosocial care: rituals, monuments and commemoration; development of post-disaster assistance for pressure groups and groups of people with similar experiences. She also contributes to various other Impact projects.

+31(0)20 6601906
j.netten@impact.arq.nl