Access to mental health services and psychotropic drug use in refugees and asylum seekers hosted in high-income countries

Abstract

This Section of Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences appears in each issue of the Journal to stress the role of the epidemiological approach to promote advances in the field of clinical psychopharmacology, with a particular attention to controversial findings. The ultimate aims are to help develop a more critical attitude towards the results of research studies published in the international literature, to promote original research projects with higher methodological standards, and to implement the most relevant results of research in every-day clinical practice. These contributions are written in house by the journal's editorial team or commissioned by the Section Editor (no more than 1000 words, short unstructured abstract, 4 key-words, one Table or In the populations of refugees and asylum seekers hosted in high-income countries, access to mental health care and psychotropic drugs, is a major challenge. A recent Swedish cross-sectional register study has explored this phenomenon in a national cohort of 43 403 young refugees and their families from Iraq, Iran, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia and Afghanistan. This register study found lower rates of dispensed psychotropic drugs among recently settled refugees, as compared with Swedish-born residents, with an increase in the use with duration of residence. In this commentary, the results of this survey are discussed in view of their global policy implications for high-income countries hosting populations of refugees and asylum seekers.

A systematic literature review of reported challenges in health care delivery to migrants and refugees in high-income countries - the 3C model

“…However in one study investigating the effect of near-universal health coverage for refugees and migrants, they still showed an increased risk for delayed prenatal care [16]. This underlines the importance of other factors, like concerns about housing or family separation that kept refugees and migrants from seeking health care [32, 47]. Third, geographical aspects are also important as migrants and refugees living in rural areas were challenged to access health facilities far away from their housing [48].…”

A network meta-analysis of psychosocial interventions for refugees and asylum seekers with PTSD

“…In addition, refugees and asylum seekers may be less willing to engage in psychosocial intervention studies because of the stigma associated with psychological problems and the lack of knowledge about reasons for being offered a psychosocial intervention. [77][78][79] Language is another obstacle for both participants and investigators, and instrument translation and involvement of native speakers for conducting the assessments is generally required. 80 Moreover, tools used for identifying groups who need mental health attention may not be adequate for different cultural groups, with a potential negative influence in trust on study outcomes.…”

Pilot Wellness Program With Adapted Social–Emotional Learning and COVID-19 Curriculum for Refugee Youth

“…We used principles of community-based participatory research to engage with community members (including refugee resettlement agency employees, nongovernmental agency directors, educators, and health care providers) and partnered with community stakeholders during all stages of planning, implementation, and analysis (Israel et al, 1998). Based on emerging pandemic-related needs, prior qualitative interviews conducted with Afghan families in the community (most recently resettled refugees were from Afghanistan in this community), and known deficiencies in available mental and physical health preventative resources (Asgary & Segar, 2011;Barghadouch et al, 2016;Nosè et al, 2015;Saunders et al, 2018), we developed a plan which addressed the following key areas of need and gaps:…”