Public Health England's Migrant Health Guide: an online resource for primary care practitioners

Abstract

Approximately 13% of the UK population in 2015 was born overseas. Most migrants have come to the UK to work or study although there has been a small increase in the number of asylum applications in the UK in recent years, reflective of the ongoing humanitarian situation across Europe.Migrants in the UK tend to be young and healthy, but some may face unique health needs as a result of their experiences before, during and after migration. For these needs to be appropriately recognised and addressed, evidence-based advice is needed for UK professionals.The Migrant Health Guide is a free online tool for healthcare professionals. It was launched in 2011 and is widely used in the UK and internationally.It has four sections: 1) Migrants and the NHS—information on access and entitlements to the National Health Service (NHS); 2) Assessing patients—includes a checklist for initial healthcare assessments and advice for patients travelling abroad to visit friends and relatives; 3) Countries—country-specific advice on infectious diseases, women's health and nutritional and metabolic concerns; and 4) Health topics—information about communicable and non-communicable diseases and other health issues.The guide has undergone an extensive update in 2017. In particular, the pages on mental health and human trafficking have been expanded.A formal evaluation will obtain feedback on the guide and measure changes in awareness, knowledge, opinions, attitudes and behaviour of end users. Findings will inform future revisions and updates to the guide.Public Health England's Migrant Health Guide is a valuable resource for healthcare professionals. The relaunched guide builds on the previous version in raising awareness of key issues and providing evidence-based advice to improve the health of migrants and refugees internationally and in the UK.