About PsyGlobal

Who we are

Connecting without borders

PsyGlobal helps foreign mental health professionals residing in the Netherlands to secure a paid job that matches their education and background. This means you can continue your career in mental health care while you are living here. On top of that, providing psychological care to fellow migrants, in their native language, gives therapists a feeling of purpose.

PsyGlobal functions as an intermediary. On the one hand, we help foreign professionals in the application process for vacancies in the field of psychology, social work and counseling. We help with the paperwork, prepare for interviews and give guidance in the process of contracts and onboarding. After placement, we also provide vocational training and peer supervision sessions.
On the other hand, we support organizations that want to hire foreign professionals. We help with the recruitment and selection, and with the necessary paperwork and contracts.

What we achieve

We match people with mental health problems, living in a country other than their homeland, with psychologists that speak their language and have the same cultural background;
We help international Mental Health Professionals to find a sustainable job that meets their educational background and experience;
We help decline waiting lists, reliev current staff, decrease costs and make treatments more efficient and effective.

How we do this

We recruit and select non-Dutch-speaking Mental Health Professionals that are currently not working in their field of expertise
We offer up-to-date information to help MHPs find their way into translating and validating diplomas and references
We match professionals with Mental Health Organizations that offer them a paid employment opportunity
We inform non-Dutch speaking clients in need about the process for obtaining psychological help in the Netherlands and the possibility of receiving this help from a Mental Health Professional that speaks the same language and has the same cultural background
We inform General Practitioners, municipalities, host families and other relevant parties about locations where our Mental Health Professionals work

Our team

Esther Haaijema

Founder

I am a psychotherapist and I have been providing treatment to clients for over a decade, mainly focusing on clients with personality disorders. I love working directly with clients but also found that change is needed to prevent that too many people will have to wait unnecessarily long for mental help. Therefor, I founded PsyGlobal, which connects my background in humanitarian aid (NOHA) with my professional career as a psychotherapist. My main focus with PsyGlobal is to make sure our services are of high standard quality. I do this by taking into consideration peoples’ needs and combining this with empirical findings and research about mental health care.

Baer Jonkers

Founder & Project Lead

With a background in clinical psychology and financial and project management in the mental health care industry for over a decade, I was very happy to meet Esther at the right moment in time. The last 5 years I have been putting all my efforts in optimizing mental healthcare for refugees living in The Netherlands. I truly believe that being active, feeling respected and having purpose and prospect to a better future adds a lot to your mental health. PsyGlobal offers this to so many professional people who currently live in a different country than their home country. By offering them a job and helping others that are in need: in their own language, taking into account the cultural differences that are so important in mental health and understanding each other.

Lars van den Brandhof

Accountmanager

I am a passionate healthcare advisor. Through BMC I was given the great opportunity to work as an interim accountmanager for Psyglobal. I am very results-oriented because I often have a clear goal in mind. I then try to achieve this goal with great enthusiasm. I find contact and connection with people very important and I like to help others move forward. In this way I hope to be of value to every client that needs help. The (mental health) care landscape is becoming increasingly complex and the pressure is increasing from all angles. I am therefore very motivated to work with Psyglobal to find a suitable solution for mental health care organisations, in order to help people who need help. Furthermore, I am always in for a cup of coffee so don’t hesitate to contact me!

Kateryna Kovalenko

Recruiter – Ukrainian nationalities

I joined the PsyGlobal team as Recruiter for Ukrainian Mental Health Professionals. I have a knack for turning ideas into organized and structured actions. I’m not just a task manager but a problem solver and effective communicator who anticipates challenges and finds appropriate solutions. As a proud Ukrainian, I am thrilled to be able to work towards enhancing the mental health of my compatriots in the Netherlands. My personal motivation and choice of professional development path are deeply rooted in my passion for psychology. I am happy to be part of a great and friendly team and to use my knowledge and experience in project and process management to achieve our common goals. As Recruiter at PsyGlobal, I’m not just passionate about delivering projects on time and within the budget, but I’m passionate about making a meaningful impact!

Seray Soyman

Recruiter – Other Nationalities

As a mental healthcare professional with a background in psychology and sexology, I take pride in being part of the motivated team of experts at PsyGlobal, where I serve as the Recruiter for non-Ukrainian nationalities. As a psychologist, I utilise interventions that are evidence-based including cognitive behavioural therapy and sex and relationship therapy. I work with individuals who speak English and Turkish and tailor their treatment according to their specific needs and goals. Apart from my practice, I have spent the last five years as a Trainer / Facilitator, organising training programmes that cover a range of mental and sexual health topics. My goal at PsyGlobal is to ensure that mental healthcare professionals worldwide have access to sustainable jobs that align with their education and experience while contributing to reducing waiting lists for treatment in the Netherlands.

Seray Soyman - National Liaison Turkey (Türkiye)

Myra Haakman

Psychological Lead

After my studies I had the privilege of conducting training sessions on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Mozambique and Kenya. It was during these experiences that my love for cross-cultural collaboration and cultural sensitivity started. My dedication deepened when I encountered the challenges faced by non-native clients seeking mental health care in the Netherlands. In 2019 I co-founded the foundation Wereldpsychologists. We have the goal to provide psychosocial support to refugees in crisis situations. I’m very happy to be now part of the team of Psyglobal as the psychological lead and to connect not only Dutch professionals to clients but also professionals with the same demographic background to non-native clients. This way I can contribute to improving the access of culturally sensitive mental health care in the Netherlands and across the globe.

Anna Korenromp

Communication Specialist

In my work as communication specialist, I am always looking to make maximum impact; putting my experience and creativity into action in projects that do good for the planet and its people. PsyGlobal is a great example of a project that ‘does good’ and I am super excited to be part of this great initiative. My goal is to get as much Mental Health Organisations, municipalities, local health authorities and GP practices as possible to open their doors for our great Ukrainian and other non-Dutch psychologists and their potential clients. I am looking forward to reaching this goal through a sharp communication strategy, both online and offline. You will be seeing a lot of PsyGlobal in the near future, stay tuned!

Partners

Ministerie van Justitie en Veiligheid

The Ministry of Justice and Security (abbreviated as J&V) in the Netherlands is responsible for the legal system at all stages. This includes legislation, prevention, enforcement, sentencing, and victim support. The ministry ensures the rule of law in the Netherlands, allowing people to live together in freedom, regardless of their lifestyle or beliefs. The ministry of Justice and Security strives for a safer and more just society by providing legal protection to individuals and intervening in their lives when necessary.

Loop

For people working with displaced persons from Ukraine, the Displaced Persons Ukraine PSH Office (LOOP) is the supra-regional information, referral and advice center. It gathers relevant information, knowledge and networks in the field of psychosocial help (PSH) and makes them accessible to stakeholders. LOOP also helps promote PSH by working on awareness of it. Professionals and involved parties can go to LOOP with questions and to find the right PSH provision. LOOP is a partnership of ARQ, the GGDs, GGD GHOR Nederland, De Nederlandse GGZ, the NIPV, Nivel, OPORA Foundation, PsyGlobal, the RIVM, the Dutch Red Cross and Refugee Council Netherlands.

De Nederlandse ggz

The Dutch Association for Mental Health Care (Netherlands ggz) is the industry association for mental health care. The association focuses on advocacy, collaboration, knowledge sharing, and innovation. Together with mental health care providers and partners within and outside the mental health care sector, de Nederlandse ggz works towards the best possible mental health care.