The Health of Refugees: Public Perspectives

Refugee health, while clearly under the rubric of public health, often has a very specific meaning depending on the context in which it is being used. In humanitarian emergencies, it usually refers to acute management of massive population movements. In the context of displaced populations, it refers to public health management to control the spread of infectious diseases that are rife in the conditions created by poor hygiene, overcrowding and lack of health service infrastructure. In the process or resettlement to third countries, refugee health involves rigorous health screening and assessments to identify exotic communicable diseases that might threaten the public health of host nations and following resettlement it refers to the management of health and health services to control marginalization of minority refugee populations, spanning from providing cultural competencies to health service staff to addressing the specific physical and mental needs of refugee groups. This book draws together a continuum of refugee health tracing the health repercussions on individuals and populations from situations of conflict through the process of resettlement in countries other than their countries of origin. The collection of papers brings together a broad range of disciplines including human rights law, journalism, public health research and practice as well as social work and community development to provide a holistic perspective on the health of refugees and asylum seekers.