Lo psicologo dell’emergenza al tempo del Covid-19: essere soccorritori e vittime da soccorrere allo stesso tempo

This article presents a reflection about the emergency psychologist at Covid-19 time, where he/she is a reliever and a victim to be rescued at the same time. This reflection starts from the experiences in the call service, offered by the Psicologi per i Popoli – Trentino ODV association from 17/3/2020 to 29/05/2020. Starting from the collaboration with the l’Assessorato alle Politiche Sociali della Provincia di Trento, an analysis of local needs, and the association’s need to not expose its collaborators to the risks of contagion, we share all the activities of the association in the quarantine period: the operation of the call service, the drafting of a vademecum addressed to the various sections of the population, thus describing the activity of the emergency psychologist within this pandemic. Furthermore, the paper shifts from doing to being, presenting the emotional experiences of emergency psychologists during the operations: hopes, expectations, emotions, and thoughts shared with colleagues, especially during debriefings, which allowed to overcome “the challenging ford of the quarantine”. Group work and team strength are then emphasized: they have been an “opportunity of meaning” for the emergency psychologist within a pandemic that leads him/her to be a helper and a victim to be helped at the same time.