In or out? Barriers and facilitators to refugee-background young people accessing mental health services.
Refugee young people have been identified as a group with high risk for mental health problems, due to their experience of trauma, forced migration, and stressors associated with settlement. A high prevalence of mental health problems is reported in this group, however some research suggests refugee young people have low rates of mental health service access. There is little information available on barriers and facilitators to mental service delivery for this group. Using data from 15 focus groups and five key informant interviews with a total of 115 service providers from 12 agencies in Melbourne, Australia, this paper explores barriers and facilitators to engaging young people from refugee backgrounds with mental health services. Eight key themes emerged: cultural concepts of mental health, illness, and treatment; service accessibility; trust; working with interpreters; engaging family and community; the style and approach of mental health providers; advocacy; and continuity of care.
Queen Mary University of London and University of Melbourne e.colucci@qmul.ac.uk.
Erminia
E
Colucci
University of Melbourne.
Harry
H
Minas
Victorian Foundation for Survivors of Torture, Melbourne.
Josef
J
Szwarc
Centre for Multicultural Youth, Melbourne.
Carmel
C
Guerra
Immigrant Health Service at the Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne.
Georgia
G
Paxton
D000293:Adolescent; D001294:Attitude to Health; D001315:Australia; D003466:Cultural Characteristics; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008605:Mental Health Services; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012036:Refugees / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult
barriers; facilitators; mental health; refugee; service utilisation; young people; youth