Development of a Refugee Health Research Agenda in North America.

The lack of a cohesive, stakeholder-informed refugee health research agenda has been a barrier to promoting, funding, and conducting health research with refugee populations in North America. A cross-sectional study was conducted among individuals working in refugee health in North America (N = 93) to describe major domains within the field of refugee health research and to develop refugee health research priorities. Open-ended survey questions included: (1) What research topics specific to refugee research would you like to see in an international research agenda? (2) Please describe current and important gaps that you believe exist in refugee research and why? Overarching themes focused on the need for the development of research partnerships with refugee communities that are intentional, effective, and driven by the needs of refugee communities.

Medical Interpreting Services for Refugees in Canada: Current State of Practice and Considerations in Promoting this Essential Human Right for All.

Language barriers, specifically among refugees, pose significant challenges to delivering quality healthcare in Canada. While the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the emergence and development of innovative alternatives such as telephone-based and video-conferencing medical interpreting services and AI tools, access remains uneven across Canada. This comprehensive analysis highlights the absence of a cohesive national strategy, reflected in diverse funding models employed across provinces and territories, with gaps and disparities in access to medical interpreting services.

Creating Health Equity in Cancer Screening: Developing Outreach Strategies for Under-Screened Populations through Community Engagement.

Inequities in cancer screening were identified in Calgary, AB, by correlating low screening participation with higher material deprivation. This initiative sought to understand awareness of and barriers to breast, cervical and colorectal cancer screening to inform the co-design and implementation of an outreach strategy to increase screening awareness. Online focus groups with community members ( = 69) identified five themes, and interviews with community health workers ( = 21) identified four themes.

Sociodemographic Characteristics and Mental and Physical Health Diagnoses of Yazidi Refugees Who Survived the Daesh Genocide and Resettled in Canada.

Importance: The health status of Yazidi refugees, a group of ethnoreligious minority individuals from northern Iraq who resettled in Canada between 2017 and 2018 after experiencing genocide, displacement, and enslavement by the Islamic State (Daesh), is unknown but important to guide health care and future resettlement planning for Yazidi refugees and other genocide victims. In addition, resettled Yazidi refugees requested documentation of the health impacts of the Daesh genocide.

Objective: To characterize sociodemographic characteristics, mental and physical health conditions, and family separations among Yazidi refugees who resettled in Canada.

Iron deficiency, anemia and association with refugee camp exposure among recently resettled refugees: A Canadian retrospective cohort study.

Malnutrition and poor health are common among recently resettled refugees and may be differentially associated with pre-migration exposure to refugee camp versus non-camp dwelling. We aimed to investigate the associations of iron deficiency (ID), anemia, and ID anemia (IDA) with pre-migration refugee camp exposure among recently arrived refugees to Canada. To this end, we conducted a retrospective cohort study of 1032 adult refugees who received care between January 1, 2011, and December 31, 2015, within a specialized refugee health clinic in Calgary, Canada.

Cervical Cancer Screening by Refugee Category in a Refugee Health Primary Care Clinic in Calgary, Canada, 2011-2016.

Newly arrived refugees and refugee claimants experience low cervical cancer screening (CCS) rates in Canada. We investigated CCS at a dedicated refugee clinic. We completed a retrospective cohort study among patients at the Mosaic Refugee Health Clinic in Calgary, Canada, between 2011 and 2016.

Fewer losses in the cascade of care for latent tuberculosis with solo interferon-gamma release assay screening compared to sequential screening.

Background: Refugees are at increased risk of developing tuberculosis (TB) soon after resettlement. Targeting high-risk populations for latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) screening and treatment is an important measure towards eliminating TB in low incidence countries, however, there are low rates of screening and treatment completion in the LTBI cascade of care. The authors hypothesized that an interferon-gamma release assay (IGRA) screening strategy would lead to a higher proportion of refugees completing LTBI screening and treatment, compared to sequential screening with tuberculin skin test (TST) and confirmatory IGRA.

Soigner les réfugiés et les nouveaux arrivants à l'ère post-COVID-19: Revue des données probantes et conseils pour les MF et les professionnels de la santé.

Objectif: Guider les cliniciens qui travaillent dans divers milieux cliniques de soins primaires quant aux façons de prodiguer des soins et du soutien efficaces aux réfugiés et aux nouveaux arrivants, durant et après la pandémie de la maladie à coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19).

Sources D'information: L'approche décrite intègre les recommandations tirées de guides de pratique clinique fondés sur des données probantes portant sur la santé des réfugiés et la COVID-19, de leçons concrètes apprises de cliniciens du Réseau canadien sur la santé des réfugiés (Canadian Refugee Health Network) qui travaillent dans divers milieux de soins primaires, ainsi que de contributions de personnes ayant vécu l'expérience d'une migration forcée.

Message Principal: La pandémie de la COVID-19 a amplifié les iniquités sociales et de santé pour les réfugiés, les demandeurs d'asile, les migrants sans papiers, les travailleurs transitoires de l'étranger et d'autres nouveaux arrivants.

Caring for refugees and newcomers in the post-COVID-19 era: Evidence review and guidance for FPs and health providers.

Objective: To guide clinicians working in a range of primary care clinical settings on how to provide effective care and support for refugees and newcomers during and after the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Sources Of Information: The described approach integrates recommendations from evidence-based clinical guidelines on refugee health and COVID-19, practical lessons learned from Canadian Refugee Health Network clinicians working in a variety of primary care settings, and contributions from persons with lived experience of forced migration.

Main Message: The COVID-19 pandemic has amplified health and social inequities for refugees, asylum seekers, undocumented migrants, transient migrant workers, and other newcomers.

Common Hematologic, Nutritional, Asthma/Allergic Conditions and Lead Screening/Management.

This article describes hematologic, nutritional, allergic/asthmatic conditions, lead screening, and management of these among immigrants and refugees. Some of these conditions present more frequently or differently in the newcomer population. Early identification and treatment are key to improving health outcomes.

Antenatal Care Utilization and Obstetric and Newborn Outcomes Among Pregnant Refugees Attending a Specialized Refugee Clinic.

The objective of the study is to characterize the antenatal care utilization and obstetric and newborn outcomes among refugee women at a specialized refugee clinic and determine whether these outcomes varied between refugees (government-assisted or privately-sponsored) and asylum seekers. This retrospective cohort study included women receiving antenatal care at a specialized refugee clinic between 2011 and 2016. Time from arrival to first clinic visit, Adequacy of Prenatal Care Utilization Index, and obstetric and newborn outcomes were examined, stratified by refugee category.

Exploring the relationship between socioeconomic factors, method of contraception and unintended pregnancy.

Background: It is estimated that approximately one-third of pregnancies in Canada are unintended, meaning they were either mistimed (the woman wanted to be pregnant at a different point in time) or undesired (the woman did not want to be pregnant). This study aimed to assess the impact of socioeconomic variables and method of contraception on the decision to either terminate or continue and unintended pregnancy.

Methods: Data were obtained from two contemporaneous studies in Calgary Canada--a cross-sectional study involving women seeking abortion services (n = 577) and a longitudinal cohort study involving women with continuing pregnancies (n = 3552) between 2008 and 2012.

Induced abortion and contraception use: among immigrant and Canadian-born women in Calgary, Alta.

Objective: To determine what proportion of women seeking induced abortion in the Calgary census metropolitan area were immigrants.

Design: For 2 months, eligible women were asked to complete a questionnaire. Women who refused were asked to provide their country of birth (COB) to assess for selection bias.

Mycobacterium senegalense tissue infection in a child after fish tank exposure.

The present report describes the first known case of an otherwise healthy child who developed a soft tissue infection due to Mycobacterium senegalense - a pathogen usually found in east Africa that is responsible for infecting various animals. The patient presented with nonhealing wounds after sustaining facial lacerations from the shattered glass of a fish tank. The patient responded well to scar revision and antibiotics, with no subsequent relapse.