Refugee and Asylum Seeker Communities and Access to Mental Health Support: A Local Case Study
AbstractThe complex mental health needs of refugee and asylum seeker (RAS) communities, often resulting from past trauma, are not met by overburdened and inadequate service provision. Pre-displacement, in-transit, and post-settlement traumas create a specific set of mental health needs which underfunded mental health services often cannot meet, despite the illusion of access to a range of services. This paper aims to explore how a range of stakeholders responded to inadequate provision at the local level. Interviews and focus groups with regional stakeholders, charities and RAS community groups, which were conducted as par...
Source: Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health - May 4, 2022 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research

Factors Associated with Development of Tuberculosis Disease Among Refugees, Massachusetts, 2008 –2018
AbstractRefugees and immigrants undergo tuberculosis screening prior to arrival in the United States. CDC Technical Instructions for screening changed in 2007. Our goal was to quantify TB disease in refugees after 2007 and identify risks for disease. Massachusetts refugee and tuberculosis databases were matched to identify refugees who arrived 2008 –2017 and were diagnosed with tuberculosis infection or disease 2008–2018. Factors associated with disease were analyzed in SAS. Of 19,583 refugees, 4706 were diagnosed with infection at arrival and 60 with disease during the observation period. Lack of treatment for infecti...
Source: Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health - April 30, 2022 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research

Length of Residency in the United States and Obesity Across Race/Ethnicity
We examined whether the association between length of US residency (LUSR) and obesity is dependent on race/ethnicity and sex, among foreign-born individuals. Adult ’s body mass index (N = 151,756) were analyzed using the 2013–2017 National Health Interview Surveys. Among foreign-born adults living in the US <  5 years, non-Hispanic Blacks and Hispanics had the highest obesity prevalence compared to non-Hispanic Whites and Asians. Blacks and Hispanics also had the highest incremental percentage point increase in obesity (13%) between <  5 years and ≥ 15 years LUSR. Foreign-born black men had ...
Source: Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health - April 30, 2022 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research

An Examination of Psychological Stress, Fatigue, Sleep, and Physical Activity in Chinese Americans
This study aimed to (1) examine psycho-physiological health (psychological stress and fatigue) and lifestyle behaviors (sleep and physical activity) between Chinese Americans and whites, and (2) investigate whether race and lifestyle behaviors were independent predictors of psycho-physiological health. This study included 87 middle-aged healthy adults (41 Chinese Americans, 46 whites). Each participant underwent a two-night actigraphy-based sleep assessment. Chinese Americans reported higher psychological stress and fatigue, had poorer objective sleep outcomes (shorter sleep duration, lower sleep efficiency, and longer sle...
Source: Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health - April 27, 2022 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research

Suboptimal Serologic Immunity Against Poliomyelitis Among New Migrant Children in Greece Calls for Organized Action
This study aims to evaluate serologic-immunity/vaccination against poliomyelitis in newly-arriving migrant children.MethodsDemographic-immunisation data and blood-serum were obtained from migrants 1-14years-old, referred to a hospital-clinic in Athens-Greece within three months from arrival. Immunity to polioviruses-1-3 was determined by serum-neutralizing-antibodies(WHO guidelines). Titers  ≥ 1:8 were considered positive.ResultsFrom 9/2010 to 9/2013, 274 children(150 refugees/124 immigrants), mean age 7.1years-old, were enrolled. Only 57(20.8%) of them presented with vaccination-records. Children originated mainly f...
Source: Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health - April 20, 2022 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research