PMH8 EXPERIENCES AND HEALTH NEEDS OF ASYLUM SEEKERS AND REFUGEES OF LATIN AMERICAN ORIGIN IN CHILE

Abstract

In Chile, people seeking political refuge have increased considerably. This situation that is part of the general increase of south-south migration flow into which the country has been inserted. The study describe the social and health needs of the Latin-American asylum-seeking population in Chile and its relationship with health institutions. A qualitative study was carried out in Metropolitan Region of Chile through structured and narrative interviews. A sample included fourteen people between seven asylum seekers and people who have received international protection and seven health professionals that work with refugee population. From the analysis of their health needs in the period preceding and after migration, a worsening in the health conditions of the interviewees emerges, with episodes of critical urgencies and specific needs related to mental health. The care of such needs is covered almost exclusively in hospital services. Mental health care is not covered by Chilean public services. The processes of bureaucratic waiting, the invisibility of their refugee status and the social and economic impoverishment increase their vulnerability. The research is an exploratory approach to the situation of refugees of Latin American origin in Chile and demonstrates the inability of health services to meet the specific needs of this population, regarding coverage in primary care and mental health care . It also shows how waiting processes, invisibility and institutional bureaucracy affect their health conditions and increase their vulnerability.