Experience of Health and Illness among Immigrants from Turkey in Switzerland (original) (raw)

“Country Report Switzerland”, Migrant Integration Policy Index Health Strand developed within the framework of the IOM Project “Fostering Health Provision for Migrants, the Roma and other Vulnerable Groups” (EQUI-HEALTH), 27 p. (co-author Bülent Kaya)

Research on migration and public health has become a topic of interest and concern in Switzerland since the 1990s. Migrant health has been approached from various perspectives, in different disciplines and by methods of investigation from medical and epidemiological points of view. This report moves from the questions and related findings of the questionnaire for the Health Strand of the Migrant Integration Policy Index (MIPEX) 2015. The questionnaire aims at reflecting on the whole situation concerning migrant health policies in Switzerland, but it focuses particularly on the German and French speaking Canton of Bern and Vaud as representative of some regional varieties between the different Swiss cantons in terms of access of and opportunities for migrant health services. After a short presentation of the past and present Swiss migration landscape and the national health system, the four main sections follows suit the structure of the health strand of the MIPEX survey. They describe the different entitlement to health services and those migrant categories concerned, the adopted policies to facilitate access and the responsiveness of the Swiss health services to diversity. Finally, a listing of possible measures to achieve change in provision of health services to migrants and asylum seekers in Switzerland is introduced.

Socio-Economic Determinants of Health and Identification of Vulnerable Groups in the Context of Migration. The Case of Austria

There are marked differences in health conditions of the Austrian population by socio- economic status, gender, age, education, occupation and income as well as by nationality. The low educational attainment of migrants, their concentration in particular occupations and industries and their above- average unemployment rate, are associated with an above- average morbidity rate of middle aged and older migrants. In addition, migrants exhibit another pattern of diseases than natives. They suffer to a greater extent than Austrians, from heart diseases, allergies, digestive and urogenital and dermatological problems. This may be partly the result of the particular stress situations they face in the work place and the community at large.

Flourishing: migration and health in social context

BMJ Global Health, 2021

Health and the capacity to flourish are deeply intertwined. For members of vulnerable migrant groups, systemic inequalities and structural forms of marginalisation and exclusion create health risks, impede access to needed care and interfere with the ability to achieve one’s full potential. Migrants often have limited access to healthcare, and they frequently are portrayed as less deserving than others of the resources needed to lead a healthy and flourishing life. Under these circumstances, clinicians, healthcare institutions and global health organisations have a moral and ethical obligation to consider the role they can—and do—play in either advancing or impeding migrants’ health and their capacity to flourish. Drawing on case studies from three world regions, we propose concrete steps clinicians and health institutions can take in order to better serve migrant patients. These include recommendations that can help improve understanding of the complex circumstances of migrants’ li...

Health of Migrants: Working Towards a Better Future

Infectious Disease Clinics of North America, 2011

In a world where profound inequalities exist, migration continues to be a fact of life. While migration enhances the diversity of nations, it also brings about a number of challenges, in particular when addressing health and social welfare. Countries are faced with the challenge of not only understanding and acknowledging the specific needs of migrant populations, but most importantly of finding the best way to meet those needs in the context of social, economic, and political pressures.

Needed Basic Research in" Migration and Health" 2002-2006 in Switzerland

2003

In spite of its recent expansion, the amount of scientific literature on migration and health remains limited in Switzerland. Identifying lack of research is particularly important, since appropriate measures can only be implemented if they have scientific foundation and support. The aim of the present study is to identify priority areas and related issues of problem-oriented basic research that need to be addressed in Switzerland.