Venezuelan Immigrants Research Articles

Highly active antiretroviral therapy discontinuation time is associated with therapeutic failure among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected immigrant adults: A cohort study from a Peruvian referral hospital during the Venezuelan exodus.

To evaluate the association between Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) discontinuation time and therapeutic failure (TF) in Venezuelan immigrants with HIV that restart HAART. We carried out a retrospective cohort study in a large hospital in Peru. We included Venezuelan immigrants who restarted HAART and were followed over at least 6 months. The primary outcome was TF. Secondary outcomes were immunologic (IF), virologic (VF) and clinical (CF) failures. The exposure variable was HAART discontinuation, categorised as no discontinuation, less than 6 months, and 6 months or more. We applied generalised linear models Poisson family with robust standard errors to calculate crude (cRR) and adjusted (aRR) relative risks by statistical and epidemiological criteria. We included 294 patients, 97.2% were males, and the median age was 32 years. Out of all the patients, 32.7% discontinued HAART for less than 6 months, 15.0% discontinued for more than 6 months and the remaining 52.3% did not discontinue. The cumulative incidence of TF was 27.9%, 24.5% in VF, 6.0% in IF and 6.0% in CF. Compared with non-discontinued HAART patients, the discontinuation for less than 6 months (aRR = 1.98 [95% CI: 1.27-3.09]) and from 6 months to more (aRR = 3.17 [95% CI: 2.02-4.95]) increased the risk of TF. Likewise, treatment discontinuation of up to 6 months (aRR = 2.32 [95% CI: 1.40-3.84]) and from 6 months to more (aRR = 3.93 [95% CI: 2.39-6.45]) increased the risk of VF. HAART discontinuation increases the probability of TF and VF in Venezuelan immigrants.

Prevalence and socioeconomic determinants of food insecurity among Venezuelan migrant and refugee urban households in Peru.

Food insecurity (FI) is a public health problem affecting many regions of the world. In Venezuela, the political, social and economic situation experienced since 2010 has caused a mass migration of its population to other countries, including Peru, which, in turn, may have limited access to and availability of food leading to a high nutritional burden in this population. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence and analyze the determinants of FI in the households of Venezuelan immigrants in Peru. A cross-sectional study was conducted using the "Encuesta Dirigida a la Población Venezolana que Reside en el País" (ENPOVE 2022). The dependent variable was moderate-severe FI (yes/no), which was constructed from an eight-item Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES) to measure FI at the household level. Poisson log generalized linear regression models were fitted to assess the association between the independent variables and FI. In addition, the reliability of the FIES as a tool for measuring food insecurity in the target population was determined. A total of 3,491 households with Venezuelan migrants and refugees were included in the analysis. We found that 39.0% of Venezuelan immigrant households in Peru experienced moderate-severe FI. The determinants of FI included socio-demographic characteristics of the household head, and economic and geographical characteristics of the household. Regarding the FIES, we found that the inclusion of 7 of the 8 items had adequate internal consistency and its items assessed the same latent range. This study highlights the need to identify determinants associated with FI to design strategies that mitigate the consequences of health crises and strengthen regional food systems, making them more sustainable. Although several studies have evaluated the prevalence of FI in Venezuelan migrant populations in other countries, this study is the first to evaluate the determinants of FI in Venezuelan immigrant households in Peru.

Representaciones sociales sobre la migración en inmigrantes venezolanos residentes en Lima Metropolitana, Perú

This article aims to understand the social representations of migration among Venezuelan immigrants residing in Metropolitan Lima during 2018. Using a phenomenological design, 15 in-depth interviews were conducted, and a hybrid content analysis was performed. Several emerging categories were identified, including motives (primarily political and economic) for migration and its personal, psychosocial, and familial consequences. Regarding the decision-making process, the journey, and limitations for emigration from Venezuela to Peru were evidenced. Additionally, the study revealed an empathetic attitude among migrants, demonstrated through their assistance, concern, and suggestions for improving the situation of migrants. In conclusion, the social representations of migration are shaped by motives, consequences, the decision-making process, and the empathetic attitude, all of which are influenced by the social, cultural, and political characteristics of the receiving country.

Abandoning the Revolution or Weaving Peace? South-South Migration, Socialism, and Decolonial Feminist Geopolitics in South America

ABSTRACT This article presents a decolonial feminist geopolitics of Venezuelan migration to Colombia, with Venezuelans fleeing the socialist Bolivarian Revolution and then facing discrimination and violence upon settling in capitalist Colombia amid its failing peace process context. Conflicts over migration and nationality permeate our global order of sovereign nation-states, both in north-south migrations and across the global south, while the feminisation and racialisation of migrants divides the subaltern class and facilitates capitalist exploitation. However, this paper elucidates migrants’ inter-national solidarities and grassroots peace struggles. Community organisers along the Colombia-Venezuela border – the women’s empowerment organisation Tejedores de Paz and youth leadership foundation Horizonte de Juventud – unite impoverished internally-displaced Colombians and Venezuelan immigrants to create resistance territories against xenophobia, patriarchy, and poverty. Illustrating the utility of the methodology of decolonial feminist geopolitics, I trace the reconfiguration of the spirit of sociopolitical revolution in South America through migrants’ emergent form of feminist non-state socialism.

Refugee Entrepreneurship: The Case of Venezuelans in Colombia

This paper analyzes the entire business registry of Colombia during 2015-2022, a period when Colombia received two million Venezuelan immigrants and refugees. We present two main findings. First, firms owned by foreigners, most of them Venezuelans, tend to be 10 to 20 percent more capitalized when founded as compared to firms owned by locals within the same industry, geographic location, and year of registration. Second, while more intensive in capital, these firms owned by foreigners are just as likely to survive the first two and three years as firms owned by locals are. We discuss the implications for these findings.

The Work, Economic, and Remittance Stress and Distress of the COVID-19 Pandemic Containment Policies: The Case of Venezuelan Migrants in Argentina and Chile.

According to the social stress process model, global crises are macro-level stressors that generate physiological stress and psychological distress. However, existing research has not identified immigrants' COVID-19 containment policy stressors or examined the social stress of sending remittances amid crises. Drawing on in-depth longitudinal interviews with 46 Venezuelan immigrants-half before and half during the pandemic-in Chile and Argentina, we identified the COVID-19 containment policies' stressors. We focused on Venezuelan immigrants because they constitute one of the largest internationally displaced populations, with most migrating within South America. We found that the governmental COVID-19 containment measures in both countries generated four stressors: employment loss, income loss, devaluation of employment status, and inability to send needed remittances. Moreover, sending remittances helped some migrants cope with concerns about loved ones in Venezuela. However, sending remittances became a social stressor when immigrants struggled to simultaneously sustain their livelihoods and send financial support to relatives experiencing hardships in Venezuela. For some immigrants, these adversities generated other stressors (e.g., housing instability) and symptoms of anxiety and depression. Broadly, for immigrants, the stressors of global crises transcend international borders and generate high stress, which strains their psychological well-being.

Vulnerability of Venezuelan immigrants living in Boa Vista, Roraima.

To identify the social and health vulnerabilities of Venezuelan immigrants living in Boa Vista, Roraima. Mixed methods research, with concomitant transformative strategy. In the quantitative phase, analysis of management documents for the state of Roraima and the capital Boa Vista were carried out. In the qualitative, open interviews with 16 Venezuelan immigrants, 14 nursing professionals and 8 public managers and a focus group with 12 nursing professionals. The webQDA software was used to organize the data and the content and discourse analyzes were based on Bardin and on dialectic-hermeneutics, according to Minayo. The main vulnerabilities identified were the absence of public policies for immigrants, the fragility of links with health services and language differences. The vulnerabilities of Venezuelan immigrants are linked to their ways of living and working. Health institutions and organizations are not fully qualified to serve them. Specific policies are needed for this social group and to qualify institutions and health professionals to implement these policies.

The vulnerabilities of Venezuelan immigrants in Brazil and Colombia from the perspective of Intervention Bioethics.

To understand the vulnerabilities to which Venezuelan immigrants living in Brazil and Colombia are exposed, from the perspective of Intervention Bioethics. Qualitative study, carried out through a semi-structured interview, with 15 immigrants living in Brasília-Brazil and 20 in Medellín-Colombia, analyzed by the IRAMUTEQ software, in the Descending Hierarchical Classification and Similitude Analysis modalities. The first thematic axis dealt with the reasons for immigrating, above all, difficulties in accessing food and health services. The second axis revealed the trajectory of the migration process, especially the adversities faced before arriving in the countries. The third axis highlighted the challenges of integration in the destination countries, with emphasis on the processes of exclusion and discrimination faced. It was observed that both Brazil and Colombia need, as proposed by Bioethics of Intervention, to develop policies to reduce the vulnerabilities of immigrants to guarantee a dignified life without discrimination against them.

The importance of desecuritizing Venezuelan immigration in Colombia

In order to analyze the process of inclusion or exclusion of Venezuelan immigrants in Colombia, two tendencies within security studies are taken into account: the Securitization Model (established by the Copenhagen School) and the concept of Human Security (proposed by the UN). These two approaches have in common the fact that they go beyond the interpretations focused on the defense of the State, the latter being the object of reference for classical security models. Both Securitization and Human Security will be put into perspective in this paper with respect to the complex panorama of migration, especially on the basis of the place of the immigrants in the security schemes of the States. Without any intentions to give a categorical answer -since the phenomenon and institutional measures have not ceased to mutate over time- it is of particular interest to elucidate to what extent the Venezuelan diaspora has or has not been securitized in Colombia, the first country to which migrants go and the one that currently hosts the most Venezuelans.

The vulnerabilities of Venezuelan immigrants in Brazil and Colombia from the perspective of Intervention Bioethics

RESUMO Objetivo: Compreender as vulnerabilidades a que estão expostos os imigrantes venezuelanos radicados no Brasil e na Colômbia, na perspectiva da Bioética de Intervenção. Método: Estudo qualitativo, realizado por meio de entrevistada semiestruturada, com 15 imigrantes que vivem em Brasília-Brasil e com 20, em Medellín-Colômbia, analisados pelo software IRAMUTEQ, nas modalidades Classificação Hierárquica Descendente e Análise de Similitude. Resultados: O primeiro eixo temático tratou dos motivos para imigrar, sobretudo, as dificuldades de acesso aos alimentos e aos serviços de saúde. O segundo eixo revelou a trajetória do processo migratório, especialmente as adversidades enfrentadas até a chegada aos países. O terceiro eixo evidenciou os desafios da integração nos países de destino, com destaque para os processos de exclusão e discriminação enfrentados. Conclusão: Observou-se que tanto o Brasil como a Colômbia precisam, conforme propõe a Bioética de Intervenção, desenvolver políticas de redução das vulnerabilidades dos imigrantes para garantir uma vida digna e sem discriminação a eles.

Multicriteria Approach to Indicators of a Humanitarian Logistics Operation

Operation Acolhida lingers due to the need for logistical and humanitarian aid to Venezuelan immigrants and refugees, providing dignity to vulnerable people who face deep economic and financial crisis in their homeland. After more than five years of operation, several indicators were consolidated, comprising a list of important information for decision making. The demand for prompt intervention with quick and effective responses requires the use of reliable indicators. This article integrates the AHP-Gaussian method with SMART criteria to evaluate the operation's indicators so to put them in order, handing over effective and reliable data for decision making. In the final evaluation, it was possible to verify that the integration of the AHP-Gaussian method with the SMART criteria produced satisfactory results for ordering the indicators and suppressed the decision maker's evaluation, resulting in long-lasting outcomes.

Vulnerability of Venezuelan immigrants living in Boa Vista, Roraima

RESUMO Objetivo: Identificar as vulnerabilidades sociais e de saúde de imigrantes venezuelanos residentes em Boa Vista, Roraima. Método: Pesquisa de métodos mistos, com estratégia transformativa concomitante. Na fase quantitativa, foram realizadas análises de documentos de gestão do estado de Roraima e da capital Boa Vista. Na qualitativa, entrevistas abertas com 16 imigrantes venezuelanos, 14 profissionais de enfermagem e 8 gestores públicos e um grupo focal com 12 profissionais de enfermagem. Utilizou-se o software webQDA para organização dos dados, e as análises de conteúdo e de discurso foram baseadas em Bardin e na hermenêutica-dialética, segundo Minayo. Resultados: As principais vulnerabilidades identificadas foram a ausência de políticas públicas para imigrantes, a fragilidade dos vínculos com os serviços de saúde e as diferenças de idioma. Conclusão: As vulnerabilidades dos imigrantes venezuelanos encontram-se vinculadas aos seus modos de viver e de trabalhar. As instituições e organizações de saúde não se encontram plenamente qualificadas para atendê-los. São necessárias políticas específicas para esse grupo social e qualificar instituições e profissionais de saúde para execução dessas políticas.

Estrategias de acceso a los alimentos implementadas en Venezuela por un grupo de venezolanos que viven en Cuiabá, Brasil

Abstract The socio-political crisis in Venezuela has generated various problems, such as food insecurity, shortages of basic products and medicines, increased unemployment and massive migration to other countries in the region. To identify the strategies for access to food experienced by Venezuelan immigrants residing in Cuiabá-MT, Brazil. This research was conducted under the qualitative approach, this approach allowed us to investigate how was the impact regarding the access and consumption of food in Venezuela lived by Venezuelan immigrants residing in Cuiabá - Brazil, from the documentation, description and understanding of the experiences they face; 13 participants were included, the data collection technique used were individual interviews. Among the main findings was that most of the interviewees did not feel comfortable with the food they had in Venezuela, given the poor conditions of access and availability of food, many of them expressed perceptions of hunger and anguish due to the lack of food and these situations led them to seek better living conditions. The socio-political crisis in Venezuela that produced the lack of availability and access to food, generated strategies to ensure a permanent food supply within households where often these strategies are not in line with a healthy and adequate diet.

THE GUARANTEE OF THE RIGHT TO FAMILY REUNION OF VENEZUELAN IMMIGRANTS AND REFUGEES FROM DOURADOS IN THE STATE OF MATO GROSSO DO SUL

The municipality of Dourados, located in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, is the fourth largest recipient of Venezuelan immigrants and refugees interiorized in Brazil. The voluntary and assisted relocation of these people in this location occurred, for the most part, through the actions implemented by Operation Shelter and Project Shelter. Until September 2022, 3.349 people from the Venezuelan population had already been relocated to Dourados, of which 2.612 had arrived in the locality through the process of interiorization through family reunification and social gathering, based on the concept of family based on affectivity. Thus, this study aims to analyze the right to family reunification of immigrants and refugees as a human and fundamental right, as well as the public policies implemented in the aforementioned municipality to guarantee them this right and promote their local integration into the host society. The research is justified by bringing an analysis of the access policy and implementation of the right to family reunion of these people, through the mentioned process, with a view to their local integration. Therefore, the deductive method is used, in a qualitative approach, in a basic research of bibliographic and documentary references to verify how the right to family reunion has been guaranteed to this group of Dourados. Finally, it appears necessary to develop a public policy at the three federal levels of government to ensure their local integration into the host society, since relocation by family reunification and social gathering are not enough.

Latinx Immigrants in the United States: A Comparative Analysis on the Venezuelan and Cuban Immigrants in Florida

Latinx immigrants in the U.S. are often analyzed through single case study methodology where each selected Latinx immigrant group in the U.S. analyzed through separate chapters of a book or a sub-section of an article. This study is prepared to compare the push factors, migration journeys and post-migration patterns of Cuban and Venezuelan immigrants in Florida by adopting Charles Tilly's Individualizing Comparison methodology. Since both of the Venezuelan and Cuban immigrants have been fleeing from left-wing home governments and choosing the same point of destination (Florida), there is a common misunderstanding that both of these immigrant groups have the same post-migration patterns. For this reason, levels of English proficiency, income, education and political party tendencies are compared throughout this study to show the differences and peculiarities of both immigrant groups in a comparative perspective. According to the findings of this study, the common assumptions about the two immigrants groups are wrong.

Fractured families and social networks: Identifying risk and resilience factors for supporting positive mental health in Venezuelan immigrant groups.

Language barriers, isolation, and challenges related to social integration, acculturative stress, and systemic discrimination are correlated with poor physical and mental health outcomes among immigrant populations. Emerging literature highlights the importance of social networks for resiliency and well-being. This study explores the experiences of Venezuelan immigrants in central Florida, factors that have promoted resilience, and considerations for mental health providers to meet the needs of this population. A phenomenological approach was used to engage Venezuelan immigrants who had been in the United States for at least 6 months (n = 48) in dialogue about forced migration, identity, and adaptation. Five focus groups using a semistructured format were conducted to explore aspects of the experience before, during, and after migration. Recruitment was done through word of mouth and community gatekeepers. Participants were 54% female with an average age of 45, 85% had at least 1 college degree, and more than half left Venezuela since 2011. Themes were identified from the focus group transcripts and clustered into three broad areas: characteristics and individual experiences, mental health, and family and social context. Major findings included the need for culturally responsive mental health support, which appeared to mitigate distress and the centrality of social networks in support of resiliency. Findings from the present study suggest that community context, support for ethnic identity, and the ability to foster meaningful connections to others with similar experience and identity are critical factors in resilience. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Prevalence of communicable and non-communicable diseases among adult immigrants from Venezuela at a university hospital in Colombia from 2017 to 2018.

Since 2015 immigration has increased significantly into Colombia. As immigrants who are not insured to the national health system present to public hospitals for medical care. However, there is little knowledge about the prevalence of communicable and non-communicable diseases amongst them. Ours was a cross-sectional study at a university hospital reviewing 154 medical records of Venezuelan immigrants treated by the Internal Medicine Specialty between 2017 & 2018. Non-communicable diseases representing 66.3% are the main cause of hospitalization, possibly owing to poor primary care.

Presumed guilty until proven credible: epistemic injustice toward Venezuelan immigrants in Colombia

With few exceptions, philosophers working on immigration have not taken up the topic of epistemic injustice, primarily, I imagine, because immigration justice is often too narrowly conceived of as encompassing moral and political concerns rather than epistemic ones. But the more I think about cases like the ones just highlighted, along with other injustices immigrants endure on a daily basis, the more I take this to be a mistake; epistemic injustices must be seen as a central aspect of immigration injustice too. In what follows, I will demonstrate how this is the case. More specifically, after providing an overview about the nature of epistemic injustice, I will highlight some examples of it in the lives of displaced Venezuelan immigrants in Colombia. In doing so, I hope to show why discussions about immigration injustice must include identifying and confronting epistemic wrongs.

Association between time of residence and self-perception of distress, interpersonal relationships, and social role in Venezuelan immigrants in Lima, Peru 2018–19: mixed-methods study

BackgroundImmigrants arriving in a new country face changes that affect their social, employment, and migratory status. We carried out a mixed-methods study in the rapidly growing Venezuelan immigrant population in Lima, Peru. The objective was to determine whether there was an association between time in Peru and self-perception of symptom distress (SD), interpersonal relationships (IR), and social role (SR).MethodsThe quantitative central component consisted of a cross-sectional study, surveying 152 participants using the Outcome Questionnaire 45.2 (OQ-45.2). The qualitative component, based on phenomenology, explored experiences and challenges during the migration process. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted in 16 informants.ResultsAn association that was observed was the increase in the risk of clinically significant SR score with additional years of age. All informants mentioned having witnessed or experienced xenophobia in Peru. Every informant stated that significant labor differences existed between the countries. The most reported somatic symptoms were symptoms of anxiety and alterations of sleep. Additionally, no informant expressed a desire to remain in Peru long term.ConclusionsA minority of participants registered a clinically significant total score and in each of the three domains of SD, IR, and SR. No association between months in Lima and the self-perception of distress was found. However, this could be due to the short amount of time spent in Peru and any change in self-perception might only be perceived after years or decades spent in Peru. This study is one of the first to use mixed-methods to explore the mental health of the immigrant Venezuelan population.

A comparison of resource use of insured and uninsured venezuelan migrants: evidence from the hospital setting.

BackgroundThere is no characterization of resource use in the hospital setting for immigrants in Colombia, we aimed to describe the resource use by Venezuelan immigrants, comparing those enrolled in the national health insurance system with those with and without the ability to pay.MethodsRetrospective review in the billing data system of our Hospital from 2011 to 2020. We collected information for 6,837 hospital episodes associated with 1,022 Venezuelan patients, hospital’s billing information for all services rendered was extracted.ResultsThe mean cost per patient event were 4,595 USD for those without the ability to pay, costing 2.37 times more than a legal resident insured. Care in the ICU, inpatient days, surgery, and OB-GYN department consume most resources provided to vulnerable migrants.DiscussionEnrolment in the national health insurance may allow better access to health services by vulnerable Venezuelan migrants and thus reduce resource use for the health system.