The Prevalence of Physical and Mental Health Conditions Among Fathers of Refugee Background: A Systematic Review

Abstract

There is growing recognition of the critical role that refugee fathers have in helping their children and families adjust to starting life in a new country, and the contribution of their mental and physical health to settlement and family health outcomes. The aims of this systematic review were to summarize and critically appraise the quality of research reporting on estimates of mental and physical health conditions among refugee fathers. Electronic databases were systematically searched to identify peer-reviewed studies reporting on the mental and/or physical health of refugee fathers of children aged 0–18 years, who had settled in a host country. Study details and estimates of mental and/or physical health conditions were extracted, and a critical appraisal of study quality conducted. Ten studies reporting estimates of post-traumatic stress (2–86%) and general psychological distress, anxiety, depression, stress and prolonged grief (25–50%) were identified. Only one study reported on physical health. Study quality and variability in recruitment, samples, data collection methods and outcomes across studies made it difficult to estimate the overall prevalence of mental and physical health difficulties. Despite marked heterogeneity across studies, this review highlights that mental health difficulties among refugee fathers are common, identifying them as a specific cohort of socially and culturally diverse fathers at risk of poor health. The findings underscore the need for health and social policy and service delivery specifically focussed on promoting the mental health of refugee fathers and their families.