title: "Their Stories Have Changed My Life": Clinicians' Reflections on Their Experience with and Their Motivation to Conduct Asylum Evaluations.
abstract: Many clinicians perform asylum evaluations yet no studies describe the motivation to perform them or their perceived rewards. The number of asylum seekers in the US is increasing and more clinicians are needed as evaluators. A survey to an asylum evaluators' network asked participants to qualitatively reflect on their experience and motivation. Answers were analyzed for themes and sentiment. Respondents cited commitment to humanistic and moral values, noted personal and family experiences, having skills, expertise, and career interests as drivers. They found the experience very rewarding personally and professionally, and in their perceived benefit to asylees. Negative sentiment was less frequent and centered on emotions related to client narratives. Process-oriented frustrations were also noted. This is the first published study describing clinicians' motivation and experience with asylum evaluations. It may illuminate clinicians' drive to volunteer, and serve as a resource for organizations for recruitment and education.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Pre-Clinical Building, GC-01D, 3900 Reservoir Rd. NW, Washington, DC, 20007, USA. mishorir@georgetown.edu.
authors.forename: Ranit
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mishori
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Pre-Clinical Building, GC-01D, 3900 Reservoir Rd. NW, Washington, DC, 20007, USA. alissedhannaford@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Alisse
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hannaford
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 1275 York Avenue, New York, NY, 10065, USA. mujawarimi@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Imran
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Mujawar
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, George Washington University, 5100 Wisconsin Ave NW, Washington, DC, 20016, USA. hopeferdowsian@sprintmail.com.
authors.forename: Hope
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ferdowsian
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Pre-Clinical Building, GC-01D, 3900 Reservoir Rd. NW, Washington, DC, 20007, USA. sk795@georgetown.edu.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kureshi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D010819:Physician's Role; D012036:Refugees; D012946:Social Welfare / Q000523:psychology*; D014838:Volunteers / Q000523:psychology*
keywords: Asylum evaluation; Asylum seekers; Human rights; Underserved care; Volunteerism