Refugee mental health research: challenges and policy implications.

Mental illness is common among forced migrant populations, and ongoing mental illness can hinder refugees' ability to negotiate the asylum process. This editorial rehearses the challenges of undertaking research among forced migrant populations, exploring how they could be addressed in future research, and outlines differences between forced migrant groups. It points to the growing body of evidence that can be called on in advocating for systemic change in government policy and mental health services, with significant support for a sensitive and objective inquisitorial approach to gathering evidence in support of asylum claims.

Differences between homeless and non-homeless people in a matched sample referred for mental health reasons in police custody.

Introduction: Homelessness has risen across high-income countries in the last decade, and in the United Kingdom, there has been a drastic increase in people living on the streets. Due to these increases, policy responses from public services are required to address the needs of this group. The risk factors for homelessness and conditions that this group live in mean they are at elevated risk of both mental health problems and contact with the criminal justice system.

The mental health of foreign national prisoners.

Foreign national prisoners include people who are subject to criminal proceedings and have been deprived of their liberty in a state in which they are neither a national nor a resident. In the United Kingdom, they constitute approximately 10,000 individuals and represent around 12% of the total prison population. Significant health disparity exists within the general prison population compared to society at large and foreign national prisoners suffer even higher rates of both physical and mental health disorders.