FW: Migrant Health Network - From bmj.com (http://www.bmj.com): Migrant friendly health policies are needed....

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Article from bmj.com

Migrant friendly health policies are needed to meet population changes

http://www.bmj.com/content/341/bmj.c6889.full?eaf

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Migrant friendly health policies are needed to meet population changes

Zarocostas

+ Author Affiliations

1Geneva

Governments worldwide need to inject more financial and human resources

into meeting the growing challenges posed by the accelerating pace of

international migration-including resources in healthcare, warns a

report.

The number of international migrants, estimated at 214 million in 2010

(up from 150 million in 2000), could rise to 405 million by 2050, says

the report from the International Organization for Migration.

It argues that over the next few decades migration is likely to be

driven by demographic disparities, the effects of environmental change,

and economic dynamics.

Swing, the organisation's director general, said, " Without

significant investments in migration issues, there is no doubt that

critical questions such as the human rights of migrants and their

integration into host societies will become even more acute. "

The medical professional " brain drain, " especially from poor sub-Saharan

African nations, is " an issue of concern, " says the report, as is the

problem of accessing healthcare among people whose immigration status is

irregular.

Healthcare workers emigrate for a variety of reasons, such as low

salaries and inadequate facilities in their home countries and to

develop professionally, says the organisation.

The report says that 28% of doctors born in sub-Saharan countries work

in nine destination countries, including Australia, Canada, South

Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States. However, the extent

of migration varies widely among countries of origin. For example, of

doctors trained in Mozambique and Angola about 65% are working abroad,

the report found.

Training more doctors in countries of origin and providing incentives

for them to stay could help retention, says the report. Destination

countries can also help counter the negative effects of migration by

promoting conditions that encourage the return of migrant workers, it

notes.

The report also highlights the marginalisation of migrants' health.

Employing more migrant workers in government jobs can help, it says:

migrant health workers, volunteers, and translators " are able to act as

a bridge between marginalized communities of migrants and the services

available to them. "

Other policies suggested in the report include bilingual mother and

child health records, reception desks for migrant in hospitals, and

establishing health posts in migrant communities.

The report says that health workers' ability to engage with migrant

clients in an " effective and culturally sensitive manner " needs to be

strengthened.

One area of migrant health that requires " special attention " relates to

people who have been trafficked, says the report. They often have

specific health needs relating to physical trauma, sexual and

reproductive health, disability, and infectious disease.

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Notes

Cite this as: BMJ 2010;341:c6889