Abstract
Most European countries have systematic health assessments of refugees with a main focus on infectious diseases. The aim of this study was to describe the broader health care needs identified in newly settled refugee children in a school health setting. The study population consisted of all 609 recently settled Non-European refugee and asylum-seeking children in the age range 6–15 years who were enrolled in the schools of Malmö, Sweden during the autumn semester of 2015, of which 265 had arrived in Sweden unaccompanied. The data were collected in a structured routine intake interview by an experienced school nurse. Almost half of the children had obvious untreated caries. For the unaccompanied children, prominent mental health needs were present in almost one in three. Previously unidentified vision and/or hearing problems were identified in one in ten and around 5% had a daily medication, and 4.5% of the unaccompanied children and 1.2% of the accompanied children were judged to be in need of immediate care and were referred accordingly. Newly settled refugee children in northern Europe have considerable health care needs apart from communicable diseases. School health services have a unique platform to identify and initiate this care.
Highlights
During the years 2015–2017, 2.5 million asylum seekers were reported in the 28 EU member states alone, including almost one million children below 18 years of age, of whom 200,000 arrived unaccompanied by a parent or caregiver
Epidemiological studies of asylum-seeking and newly settled refugee children in northern Europe have mostly focussed on infectious disease [2,3] and mental health problems [4], whereas there is a dearth of studies with a broader perspective of health care needs [5]
For newly settled refugee children, it seems probable that the special food situation and the lack of dental health care in the war stricken countries of origin and during the journey to Sweden may have contributed to the high caries rate [9]
Summary
During the years 2015–2017, 2.5 million asylum seekers were reported in the 28 EU member states alone, including almost one million children below 18 years of age, of whom 200,000 arrived unaccompanied by a parent or caregiver. European countries and Germany, this health examination is mandatory with a focus on infectious disease; while in the rest of western and northern Europe it is mostly voluntary and tries to identify individual health care needs. Epidemiological studies of asylum-seeking and newly settled refugee children in northern Europe have mostly focussed on infectious disease [2,3] and mental health problems [4], whereas there is a dearth of studies with a broader perspective of health care needs [5]. During the autumn of 2015, Sweden received around 150,000 asylum applicants, including more than 35,000 applications from children unaccompanied by a caretaker. In the Malmö school system, the health care needs of recently arrived children with an origin outside Sweden are assessed by an experienced nurse
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