Immigrants and refugees
Immigrants and refugees have been growing populations in many cities across the country. These groups of people can have limited resources yet need health services. The experiences they have had in their home countries, or even while traveling to their current location can impact how much they trust health care providers. In this journal, reflect on any experiences, personal or professional, you have had with people from a culture different than yours.
Reflect on the difference between immigrants and refugees as well as the potential barriers each group may have in accessing health care. As a leader, what types of programs or resources do you believe would be most helpful for these populations?
More than 1 billion people are on the move globally, about 1 in 8 of the global population. Of this total, 281 million people are international migrants (1) and 84 million are forcibly displaced (48 million are internally displaced, 26.6 million are refugees, 4.4 million are asylum seekers). Among the forcibly displaced, 35 million are children and 1 million were born into refugee life. Refugees and migrants have a variety of different physical and mental health needs, shaped by experiences in their country of origin, their migration journey, their host country’s entry and integration policies, and living and working conditions. These experiences can increase the vulnerability of refugees and migrants to chronic and infectious diseases. The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted health services, putting people already in vulnerable situations at heightened risk and hampering the ability of health systems to respond to their needs.