Unit 2: General Issues In assessing the information gathered through the RSD process that is relevant to the determination of the claim, the Eligibility Officer should be mindful of whether and, if so, how the mental health condition or intellectual disability may have affected the Applicant’s ability or willingness to recall and recount the events leading to his/her departure from the country of origin. Inconsistencies or a lack of specificity of detail in the Applicant’s account may, for instance, be due to an impaired ability to recall or unwillingness to recount past traumatic events. Similarly, fear, shame or distrust associated with stigma against persons with mental health condition or intellectual disability may be the cause of an apparent refusal to cooperate. Where there are indications that the mental health condition or intellectual disabilities may have affected the Applicant’s ability or willingness to provide an account or his/her participation in the RSD interview more generally, it may be appropriate to conduct a complementary interview taking all steps necessary (e.g. additional counseling, presence of support person, adapted interview techniques, etc.) to encourage the fullest disclosure possible. Where the Applicant faces significant obstacles to his/her participation in the RSD process as a result of his/her mental health condition or intellectual disability, and where conducting a RSD/complementary Interview is not appropriate in a particular case, it will be necessary to use other reliable sources (such as accompanying family members, caregivers, friends, witnesses or other persons acquainted with them) to obtain relevant information about the Applicant’s eligibility for refugee status. The Applicant’s consent or, if the Applicant is not capable of providing consent, his/her views should be obtained prior to contacting family members, caregivers or other witnesses for information regarding the Applicant’s claim (for further guidance regarding consent, see § 2.9.2(i) – Confidentiality of UNHCR RSD Procedures and Data Protection). In some cases, it may be possible to reach a decision regarding the Applicant’s refugee status claim on the basis of already available information from other reliable sources, including objective information relating to risks upon return for persons with similar profile as the Applicant, without conducting a RSD Interview. This includes information provided by the Applicant himself/herself, and any supporting information provided by family members or other persons with first-hand knowledge of the Applicant’s situation in the country of origin, and up-to-date COI. Where the Applicant fully and permanently lacks the capacity to meaningfully participate in the RSD Interview and a determination of the Applicant’s claim is not possible due to insufficiency of information relating to the material elements of the Applicant’s claim, UNHCR Offices should advocate for and pursue other protection avenues (e.g. granting of humanitarian protection, regularisation of status through national immigration channels, etc.) with the authorities of the host country/country of asylum. Notification of RSD decisions to Applicants with mental health conditions or intellectual disabilities should be done in accordance with the guidance in § 6 – Notification of RSD Decisions. Offices should make every effort to ensure that Applicants with mental health conditions or intellectual disabilities have the possibility of meeting with a UNHCR staff member to receive counselling on the reasons for the negative RSD decision and on appeal procedures. Applicants may be accompanied by their legal representatives and, where appropriate, support persons for the purposes of in-person notification and counselling. (h) Priority and Accelerated RSD Processing Applications for refugee status by Applicants with mental health conditions or intellectual disabilities may be processed on a priority basis and/or referred to accelerated RSD processing where there is a clear protection benefit to do so, such as access to a durable solution or to rights or assistance in the host country/country of asylum (see also § 4.9 – Accelerated RSD Processing). A decision to prioritize 93