The impact of migration upon the perceived health of adult refugees resettling in Australia: a phenomenological study

ABSTRACT

Resettled refugees are an important and growing population in Australia with special health needs. Many are at an increased risk for health problems due to their past and current migration experiences, but how migration shapes refugee health is not well understood. Such information is important to help settlement nations’ design services that best meet the needs of refugees. Drawing on a qualitative phenomenological perspective, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 19 adult refugees living in Australia to examine the relationship between their health and migration experiences. Data were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Findings from this study indicate that the health of participants is influenced by pre-migration violence and loss, and stressors associated with living in transit and settlement countries. Social support, religiosity and future aspirations were commonly reported enablers of health and well-being. Gender appears to play a significant role in the health outcomes of our refugee population.

KEYWORDS:

• Refugee
• migration
• resettlement
• health
• phenomenology

Acknowledgements

We thank the recruitment sites and their staff for their invaluable assistance with this research study. We are also indebted to the contributions of the research participants, without whom this study would not have been possible.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.