TY - JOUR
T1 - Health professionals’ experiences of and attitudes towards mental healthcare for migrants and refugees in Europe: a qualitative systematic review
AU - Penuela O'Brien, Estefania
AU - Wan, Ming Wai
AU - Edge, Dawn
AU - Berry, Katherine
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2022.
PY - 2023/2
Y1 - 2023/2
N2 - Migrants living in Europe constitute over half of the world's international migrants and are at higher risk of poor mental health than non-migrants, yet also face more barriers in accessing and engaging with services. Furthermore, the quality of care received is shaped by the experiences and attitudes of health professionals. The aim of this review was to identify professionals’ attitudes towards migrants receiving mental healthcare and their perceptions of barriers and facilitators to service provision. Four electronic databases were searched, and 23 studies met the inclusion criteria. Using thematic synthesis, we identified three themes: 1) the management of multifaceted and complex challenges associated with the migrant status; 2) professionals’ emotional responses to working with migrants; and 3) delivering care in the context of cultural difference. Professionals employed multiple strategies to overcome challenges in providing care yet attitudes towards this patient group were polarized. Professionals described mental health issues as being inseparable from material and social disadvantage, highlighting a need for effective collaboration between health services and voluntary organizations, and partnerships with migrant communities. Specialist supervision, reflective practice, increased training for professionals, and the adoption of a person-centered approach are also needed to overcome the current challenges in meeting migrants’ needs. The challenges experienced by health professionals in attempting to meet migrant needs reflect frustrations in being part of a system with insufficient resources and without universal access to care that effectively stigmatizes the migrant status.
AB - Migrants living in Europe constitute over half of the world's international migrants and are at higher risk of poor mental health than non-migrants, yet also face more barriers in accessing and engaging with services. Furthermore, the quality of care received is shaped by the experiences and attitudes of health professionals. The aim of this review was to identify professionals’ attitudes towards migrants receiving mental healthcare and their perceptions of barriers and facilitators to service provision. Four electronic databases were searched, and 23 studies met the inclusion criteria. Using thematic synthesis, we identified three themes: 1) the management of multifaceted and complex challenges associated with the migrant status; 2) professionals’ emotional responses to working with migrants; and 3) delivering care in the context of cultural difference. Professionals employed multiple strategies to overcome challenges in providing care yet attitudes towards this patient group were polarized. Professionals described mental health issues as being inseparable from material and social disadvantage, highlighting a need for effective collaboration between health services and voluntary organizations, and partnerships with migrant communities. Specialist supervision, reflective practice, increased training for professionals, and the adoption of a person-centered approach are also needed to overcome the current challenges in meeting migrants’ needs. The challenges experienced by health professionals in attempting to meet migrant needs reflect frustrations in being part of a system with insufficient resources and without universal access to care that effectively stigmatizes the migrant status.
KW - Europe
KW - healthcare professional attitudes
KW - mental health
KW - mental health services
KW - migrants
KW - thematic synthesis
KW - Humans
KW - Refugees
KW - Health Personnel/psychology
KW - Delivery of Health Care
KW - Health Services Accessibility
KW - Mental Health Services
KW - Transients and Migrants
KW - Qualitative Research
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85122402961&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/456b17b2-e396-39f4-ad4c-509ee04ef498/
UR - https://research.manchester.ac.uk/en/publications/5f7706f1-0541-4168-bfea-e8ebc4ee5313
U2 - 10.1177/13634615211067360
DO - 10.1177/13634615211067360
M3 - Article
C2 - 34986056
SN - 1363-4615
VL - 60
SP - 176
EP - 198
JO - Transcultural Psychiatry
JF - Transcultural Psychiatry
IS - 1
ER -