Health considerations in the Syrian refugee resettlement process in Canada

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DOI

https://doi.org/10.14745/ccdr.v42is2a02

Language of the publication
English
Date
2016-03-17
Type
Article
Author(s)
  • Hansen, L.
  • Huston, P.
Publisher
Public Health Agency of Canada

Abstract

Canada has responded to the humanitarian emergency in Syria by committing to welcome 25,000 Syrian refugees by early 2016. This has been a complex undertaking which required coordination between international organizations, such as the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and federal government departments, including Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), the Department of National Defence (DND) and the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC). Within and across Canada, this initiative has also required the collaboration of provincial and municipal governments, non governmental organizations and volunteers, including private sponsors, to enable planning for the transition of Syrian refugees into a new life in Canada. In planning for the reception of Syrian refugees, government agencies did not anticipate major infectious disease threats. However, early findings from Europe and the experience of health care providers who serve other refugee populations suggested that this population may have other unmet health needs and untreated conditions, due to their experience of displacement over the past three to four years. With this in mind, a great deal of planning has been undertaken to address potential challenges to public health. Social services providers and medical interpreters have been enlisted to help Syrians access the health care system and explain their needs. Communities of practice within Canada have responded, both in providing care and in developing and updating tools and resources to support a culturally sensitive and evidence-based approach to screening and meeting the health needs of the Syrian refugees.

Subject

  • Health

Keywords

  • Syrian,
  • refugee,
  • resettlement

Rights

Peer review

Yes

Open access level

Green

Identifiers

PubMed ID
29770037
ISSN
1481-8531

Article

Journal title
Canada Communicable Disease Report
Journal volume
42
Journal issue
Suppl 2

Relation

Citation(s)

Hansen L, Huston P. Health considerations in the Syrian refugee resettlement process in Canada. Can Comm Dis Rep 2016;42-Suppl 2:S3-7. https://doi.org/10.14745/ccdr.v42is2a02

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Collection(s)

Social determinants of health

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