|
 
 |
| LETTER TO EDITOR |
|
| Year : 2018 | Volume
: 9
| Issue : 1 | Page : 44-45 |
|
Utilizing a toolkit to respond to the health needs of migrant people in the European region: World Health Organization
Saurabh RamBihariLal Shrivastava, Prateek Saurabh Shrivastava, Jegadeesh Ramasamy
Department of Community Medicine, Shri Sathya Sai Medical College and Research Institute, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
| Date of Web Publication | 24-Jan-2018 |
Correspondence Address:
Dr. Saurabh RamBihariLal Shrivastava
3rd Floor, Department of Community Medicine, Shri Sathya Sai Medical College and Research Institute, Ammapettai, Thiruporur - Guduvanchery Main Road, Sembakkam Post, Kancheepuram - 603 108, Tamil Nadu
India
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/mjmsr.mjmsr_51_17
How to cite this article:
Shrivastava SR, Shrivastava PS, Ramasamy J. Utilizing a toolkit to respond to the health needs of migrant people in the European region: World Health Organization. Muller J Med Sci Res 2018;9:44-5 |
How to cite this URL:
Shrivastava SR, Shrivastava PS, Ramasamy J. Utilizing a toolkit to respond to the health needs of migrant people in the European region: World Health Organization. Muller J Med Sci Res [serial online] 2018 [cited 2023 Mar 25];9:44-5. Available from: https://www.mjmsr.net/text.asp?2018/9/1/44/223917 |
Dear Editor,
Since 2005, a large influx of migrants has been reported in different nations of the European region, especially those which are in proximity to North Africa or the Middle East.[1],[2] In fact, in the span of 2005–2010, more than 5 million people have migrated into the region, which accounted for almost three-fourth of the population growth reported in the region in the same period.[2] Furthermore, it has been estimated that more than 70 million migrants are living in the region in today's date, of which more than 50% are women.[2],[3] Moreover, in 2015 alone, more than 1 million migrants have reached Europe through sea, and all this has proved to be quite challenging for the policymakers of the recipient nations.[3]
From a humanitarian perspective, it is vital that efforts are taken to respond to the health needs of these vulnerable groups of people, especially due to the circumstances under which they have to leave their home, their long and deceitful journey, exposure to multiple forms of health and safety concerns during journey, and substandard living conditions on arrival.[1],[2],[3],[4] However, due to the unexpected migration of a large number of people and the lack of preparedness of the recipient nations, an interruption in the activities of the health system has been observed.[1],[4]
Too assist the nations in the act of their assessment and to bring about an improvement in their health capacity to meet the needs of migrated people, a toolkit has been developed.[3] The toolkit has been developed keeping in mind the target of universal health coverage as proposed under the Sustainable Development Goals and reiterates the commitment of the member states of the United Nations to not to leave anyone behind.[3] This toolkit has been developed with the help of international welfare agencies, and it ensures that the local policymakers are supported in such a way that the capacity of the health system can be enhanced through multi-sectoral collaboration and hence that these vulnerable groups of people have an equal opportunity to access healthcare.[3],[5] Further, it enables the precise estimation of the financial cost of the response and the probable social tensions and even has a provision to deal with the health needs of the staffs involved in the rescue, care, and settling activities.[5]
Moreover, through the toolkit, the World Health Organization is supporting the recipient nations in different interconnected activities of the health systems, namely development of a strong leadership through strategic frameworks, and building a team of skilled health workers, especially from different backgrounds.[3],[5] In addition, measures such as promoting the rational use of medical products, vaccines and technologies, strengthening health information systems to respond to the health needs during large-scale arrivals, and developing a sustainable health financing mechanism to enable care for all, has also been proposed.[3],[5] The toolkit has been implemented in 11 nations till date, as a pilot project and all efforts are taken to adhere to the principles of equity, dignity, and respecting human rights during health-care delivery.[3]
To conclude, the phenomenon of migration is an international concern, and thus, it has to be considered as an opportunity to be managed to ensure that the quality of life of migrants is improved both during their journey as well as the recipient nations.
Financial support and sponsorship
Nil.
Conflicts of interest
There are no conflicts of interest.
| References | |  |
| 1. | Shrivastava SR, Shrivastava PS, Ramasamy J. Strengthening the health care delivery system to respond to the health needs of the migrant population: European nations' perspective. CHRISMED J Health Res 2016;3:240-1.  [Full text] |
| 2. | |
| 3. | |
| 4. | Shrivastava SR, Shrivastava PS, Ramasamy J. Systematically addressing the health concerns of migrants universally. Int J Adv Med Health Res 2016;3:48-9. |
| 5. | World Health Organization. Toolkit for assessing health system capacity to manage large influxes of refugees, asylum-seekers and migrants. Geneva: WHO Press; 2016. p. 1-13. |
|
Search Pubmed for