Enfermedades importadas en España: dificultades en la atención sanitaria

Abstract

Introducción: En España, desde el 2000 hasta el 2010, existían medidas que fomentaban la igualdad en salud y acceso a los servicios sanitarios de la población inmigrante. Con el inicio de la crisis y las reducciones del gasto público en salud, se instauraron medidas, que no solo tienen consecuencias negativas para este colectivo sino también para la salud pública en general, viéndose en aumento el número de casos de enfermedades importadas, también relacionadas con el aumento de viajes internacionales.Objetivos: Evaluar la presencia de enfermedades importadas en España y conocer la problemática del inmigrante en el Sistema Sanitario. Método: Revisión bibliográfica de estudios en lengua inglesa y castellana publicados entre 2007 y 2017 recogidos varias bases de datos y en informes de instituciones y organizaciones científicas.Resultados: Se obtuvo un total de 173 artículos indexados en las bases de datos. De estos, 32 se ajustaron a los criterios de inclusión, de los que se seleccionaron 15 para responder a los objetivos.15 producciones se adaptaron al objetivo del presente estudio. Los estudios afirman que los movimientos poblacionales como migraciones o a viajes internacionales, elevan la presencia de enfermedad importada en España. Esto junto con las medidas legislativas impuestas por el gobierno en materia de sanidad, dificultan al inmigrante irregular la posibilidad de acceder al Sistema Sanitario español. Destacan además otras dificultades para el inmigrante como son el idioma y el desconocimiento del correcto acceso y uso de las prestaciones sanitarias.Conclusión: Todo esto, crea desconfianza en el inmigrante, el cual aplaza el contacto con el servicio sanitario, pudiendo llegar a ocasionar un grave problema en la salud pública, principalmente por el retraso en el diagnóstico, tratamiento y seguimiento de enfermedades infecciosas importadas. Introduction: In Spain, from 2000 to 2010, there were measures that promoted equality in health and permitted access to health services for the immigrant population. Because of the economic crisis and the reductions in public expenditure on health, security measures were put in place, which not only had negative consequences for this group, also for public health in general. Therefore, the number of imported diseases cases have increased in direct relation to international travels.Objectives: To evaluate the presence of imported diseases in Spain and to know the problem of the immigrant in the Health System.Method: the literature review of studies in English and Spanish published between 2007 and 2017, including several databases and reports from institutions and scientific organizations.Results: A total of 173 articles indexed in the databases were obtained. 32 of these articles were adjusted to the inclusion criteria, of which 15 were selected to respond to the objectives. The studies affirm that population movements such as migrations or international trips, increase the presence of imported diseases in Spain. In addition, legislative measures imposed by the government on health matters, complicate access to the Spanish Health System for irregular immigrants. They also highlight other difficulties for the immigrant, such as the language and the lack of knowledge of the correct access and use of health services.Conclusion: The sum of all the above mentioned, creates lack of confidence in the immigrant, which postpones contact with the health service, and may lead to a serious problem in public health, mainly due to the delay in the diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring of imported infectious diseases.

Nursing Students’ Attitudes towards Immigrants’ Social Rights

“…When analyzing the faculty variable, the results showed that students in Melilla and Ceuta exhibited the poorest attitudes, especially in relation to health and social care resources, which may be explained by the limited and scarce social care resources available, causing immigrants to be seen as competitors for these resources [12]. These data are consistent with studies conducted in Melilla, where nurses felt that the reason for their hospital being overwhelmed was that Moroccans were being treated there [41,42]. This perceived "abuse" of the healthcare services and social benefits by immigrants coincides with studies conducted in the general population [22,43].…”