The mental health of former refugees in regional Australia: A qualitative study.
health services
mental health
qualitative
refugees
regional and rural Australia
resettlement
Journal
The Australian journal of rural health
ISSN: 1440-1584
Titre abrégé: Aust J Rural Health
Pays: Australia
ID NLM: 9305903
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
Oct 2019
Oct 2019
Historique:
received:
09
04
2019
revised:
16
09
2019
accepted:
17
09
2019
pubmed:
28
10
2019
medline:
31
3
2020
entrez:
26
10
2019
Statut:
ppublish
Résumé
To examine the resettlement experiences of former refugees living in regional Australia, focusing on mental health and mental health and support services, including barriers to access. A phenomenological approach utilising a combination of six qualitative, semi-structured, face-to-face focus groups (n = 24) and seven individual interviews. Data were analysed thematically using NVivo 10 software. Launceston, Tasmania. Adult and youth former refugees from Afghanistan, Bhutan, Burma, Sierra Leone, Sudan and Iran, and essential service providers, residing in Launceston. Participants were asked about experiences of resettlement and mental health. Participants reported that their mental health had improved since resettlement; however, major stressors impacted mental health and resettlement included employment and housing access and mastering the English language. Past experiences continued to impact current functioning, with trauma commonly experienced intergenerationally through parenting and attachment and ongoing trauma and feelings of guilt and responsibility experienced with families left behind. Participants noted barriers to accessing services: (a) Language difficulties including lack of interpreters; and (b) lack of culturally sensitive and trauma-informed practices. Discrimination was experienced through the inconsistent provision of interpreters and lack of due consideration of cultural and religious differences. The use of children as interpreters enhanced a number of risk including miscommunication of medical information, exposure to age-inappropriate information and the resulting increased risk of trauma for the child. Culturally sensitive, trauma-informed and discrimination-free practices should be employed across services, where Western-views surrounding this medical model are not imposed, cultural differences are respected, and timely access to interpreters was provided.
Types de publication
Journal Article
Langues
eng
Pagination
459-462Informations de copyright
© 2019 National Rural Health Alliance Ltd.
Références
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