Acute Psychiatric Problems among Migrants Living in Switzerland- a Retrospective Study from a Swiss University Emergency Department

Abstract

Background: Switzerland is a traditional immigration country with immigrants from both neighbouring, and less developed countries. Since the early 1990s, the migration rate has continuously increased and in 2013 almost a quarter of Swiss residents had an immigration background. Immigrants in Switzerland had fewer psychiatric hospitalisations, but more emergency and compulsory admissions than the local population. Therefore it is important to study the characteristics of the immigrant population presenting at the emergency department for mental health problems.

Increased Urgent Care Center Visits by Southeast European Migrants: A Retrospective, Controlled Trial from Switzerland

“…In the same period, the number of psychiatric cases in the native population increased by 17.8%. Similar findings have been seen in other studies on psychiatric problems among immigrants in ED [ 9 , 30 ]. As a comparison, other Swiss studies have found increasing numbers of psychiatric patients in ED (from 60 to 315 per year between 2007 and 2012) and the most common reasons for psychiatric presentation to ED were psychosis (20.3%), social problems (18.2%), auto-aggression (16.4%), and depression (16.2%) [ 9 ].…”

“…However, there are gaps in current knowledge in this research area. A few publications have explored differences between immigrants and nationals [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ], socioeconomic status [ 6 ], or general well-being and health of short- and long-term immigrants [ 7 , 12 , 13 , 14 ]. Some studies have found that immigrants attend EDs more often than host populations—but these findings have not been consistent [ 15 , 16 ].…”

“…Some studies have found that immigrants attend EDs more often than host populations—but these findings have not been consistent [ 15 , 16 ]. Several studies have analyzed the health of immigrant patients in Switzerland and have reported specific health-related problems [ 6 , 8 , 9 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 ].…”

Child Developmental Disabilities, Caregivers’ Role in Kenya and Its Implications on Global Migration

“…It has been established by Chatzidiakou et al (2016) that the traumatic experiences that refugees undergo during migration may lead to them to develop psychosocial issues in the new country of destination. They highlight the acute psychiatric health problems experienced by migrants living in Switzerland [21].…”

Psychiatric Emergencies of Asylum Seekers; Descriptive Analysis and Comparison with Immigrants of Warranted Residence

“…At the same time, major challenges such as cultural and language barriers need to be addressed [ 7 , 13 ]. Utilization patterns among immigrants in general have already been assessed in the Swiss context [ 14 , 15 , 16 ]. Nevertheless, data for asylum seekers are particularly scarce.…”