A mile in their shoes: understanding health-care journeys of refugees and asylum seekers in the UK
International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care
ISSN: 1747-9894
Article publication date: 1 April 2024
Issue publication date: 17 May 2024
Abstract
Purpose
Refugees and asylum seekers worldwide face numerous barriers in accessing health systems. The evidence base regarding who and what helps refugees and asylum seekers facilitate access to and the navigation of the health system in the UK is small. This study aims to address this gap by analysing 14 semi-structured, in-depth interviews with refugees and asylum seekers of different countries of origin in the UK to identify where, when and how they came into contact with the health-care system and what the outcome of these interactions was.
Design/methodology/approach
Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were chosen as the key method for this study. In total, 14 individual interviews were conducted. A trauma-informed research approach was applied to reduce the risk of re-traumatising participants.
Findings
The paper identifies key obstacles as well as “facilitators” of refugees’ and asylum seekers’ health-care experience in the UK and suggests that host families, friends and third-party organisations all play an important role in ensuring refugees and asylum seekers receive the healthcare they need.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first qualitative study in the UK that looks at comprehensive health journeys of refugees from their first encounter with health services through to secondary care, highlighting the important role along the way of facilitators such as host families, friends and third-party organisations.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank all the participants for their contributions to this study.
Funding: This project was funded by the University of Oxford’s John Fell Fund.
Conflict of interest: No conflict of interest.
Citation
Talks, I., Al Mobarak, B., Katona, C., Hunt, J., Winters, N. and Geniets, A. (2024), "A mile in their shoes: understanding health-care journeys of refugees and asylum seekers in the UK", International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, Vol. 20 No. 2, pp. 305-319. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJMHSC-06-2023-0060
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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