Public Health and Human Right Challenges of Syrian Refugees and Immigrants with Precarious Status

Abstract

Civil unrest in Syria that started in March 2011 has resulted in about five million refugees in neighboring countries – many suffering from physical and mental illnesses due to the environment and pathogens, as well as human rights violence and abuse (UNICEF, 2017). The social, economic, and health costs of the conflict have disproportionately affected women and children, who have – typically been targeted in wartime for violence, abuse, and trafficking into forced labor and sex slavery. The objective of this study is to evaluate what many women and children have experienced, given the complexity of the Syria crisis and its pertinent extreme violence and uncertainty. Women and girls experience high levels of trauma, ranging from severe emotional disorder (psychosis, severe depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), severely disabling anxiety, etc.), mild or moderate disorders, and mild or moderate depression and anxiety, among other psychiatric disorders, along with normal distress and other psychological reactions. Those victims of potentially traumatic events are left with the long term effects of clinically relevant PTSD symptoms in addition to stigma and shame (Dadzie, 2017). The goal of this study is to provide the appropriate framework and directions for governments, and public health providers about the necessary interventions and services for those refugees. Such treatments are essential given the high level of physical and mental risk which require early treatment for recovery.