Refugees and Their Mental Health

Refugees and Their Mental Health

Refugees and Their Mental Health

Introduction

There has been a growing interest in understanding the health needs of refugee communities in Europe and North America. Somalis are amongst the largest groups of asylum seekers coming to the UK and specially London; nevertheless, little is known about their health and settlement needs. The post-migration literature of geography on the health of refugees and their integration processes is scant.

Research background

A growing body of research is focusing on the significance of residential mobility for health of populations (Rousseau 1998). The 'healthy migrant' thesis argues that socially advantaged populations with high levels of residential mobility are most likely to move towards more privileged settings which are beneficial for health. However, there are also a significant number of studies suggesting the effect of 'malign migration' whereby marginalised and socially disadvantaged groups experience higher than average levels of residential mobility which is detrimental to health. This latter 'malign' form of residential mobility is common in inner city areas and has often been invoked in relation to poor and socially excluded populations with relatively poor mental health. People in these groups are thought to be more mobile because of a shortage of suitable housing and because of exclusion and discrimination experienced in some residential areas. Moreover, it is sometimes argued that these inner city populations, irrespective of cultural origins, present particular challenges to health and social services because of the problems of maintaining stable contacts with key health professionals such as general practitioners and social workers, and this may compromise their effective access to, and use of, social and healthcare services.

Aim and Objective

This paper focuses especially on migrant residential mobility after arrival in the UK and considers the implications for health and healthcare.

Purpose of the study

The purpose of the study will be to explore from Somali perspectives the meaning of geographical mobility, how much of an issue geographical mobility is in the lives of Somalis, and to listen to how this may relate to mental health status and health service use. We particularly aim to explore Somali narratives and realities of geographical mobility and mental health.

Literature review

A proliferation of the literature has examined and explored the role of residential instability in the mental health status of homeless groups (McCrone 2005). The findings of these studies suggested that transient populations have a wide range of social problems, higher levels of unmet need and significant levels of severe mental illnesses. Johnsen (2005) proposed that homelessness exists because of the lack of adequate housing provision to the poorest and underprivileged members of society and that the psychological problems of people without stable residential places might be the result of material deprivation and homelessness. These problems are long Green (2004) noted a historical observation that 'able-bodied' people who were in receipt of welfare assistance were viewed as the 'undeserving poor', with far-reaching social and policy implications, in terms of how the State and society conceptualised and responded to the social care ...