Special Situations: Places of Immigration Detention

A qualitative study of experiences of asylum-seeker women of living in detention centres: confinement versus safetyBackground: Australia has been at the forefront of legislation for compulsory detention for asylum seekers arriving by boat. Iranians are amongst the highest number of boat arrivals.More women than men have been subject to compulsory detention. Women, generally, face more health-threatening problems rather than men in detention, yet, remain understudied in health and social research. This study aimed to inform healthcare providers about the experiences of living in immigration detentions, which might affect asylum seekers' mental health and treatment process.Method: A qualitative study using in-depth semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis.Results: Participants (n=17) who had experienced a period of detention shared their experiences. . Living in a prison-like environment was perceived as a punishment for their boat arrival and violated their privacy and dignity. On the other hand, a sense of safety and security, free access to healthcare services, and the opportunity to build social networks were positive aspects of short-term detention. Conclusion: To prevent further trauma, living conditions in detention must be conducive to promoting coping and adjustment. Moreover, the length of detention should be minimised and considered an opportunity to prepare new arrivals for facing a new socio-cultural environment.Impact statement: Findings of this study can provide healthcare providers, in particular nurses, an insight about this population's background and difficulties they experienced in detention and their negative psychological impacts which might affect treatment plan.

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A qualitative study of experiences of asylum-seeker women of living in detention centres: confinement versus safety

Shishehgar

Gholizadeh

DiGiacomo

et al. 2021

Contemporary Nurse

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Special Situations: Places of Immigration Detention

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A qualitative study of experiences of asylum-seeker women of living in detention centres: confinement versus safety

A qualitative study of experiences of asylum-seeker women of living in detention centres: confinement versus safety

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