title: Screening for Infectious Diseases among Newly Arrived Migrants: Experiences and Practices in Non-EU Countries of the Mediterranean Basin and Black Sea.
abstract: Changing migration dynamics in the Mediterranean Sea and differences in infectious diseases (ID) burden between the countries of origin have raised questions whether public health actions are needed to avoid the transmission of ID. Screening newly arrived migrants for ID is one health monitoring option, offering opportunities for prevention, early detection and treatment. The authors conducted a survey among country experts in non-European Union countries of the Mediterranean and Black Sea, in order to explore current ID screening practices and policies for newly arrived migrants. The association between the existence of guidelines and the proportion of refugees in the population was also estimated. Eighteen country experts responded (90%) out of the 20 invited. Eleven countries (61%) implemented screening programmes and six (38%) had national guidelines. Screening was performed most often for tuberculosis at the holding level. A higher proportion of refugees in the population was associated with the existence of guidelines for screening (p = 0.05). Fourteen experts (88%) considered screening among migrants useful. The results show that screening for ID in newly arrived migrants is relevant for non-EU countries of the Mediterranean and Black Sea. Common guidelines could be promoted focusing on both individual and public health benefits of screening programmes.
authors.affiliation: National Centre for Epidemiology, Surveillance and Health Promotion, National Institute of Health (Istituto Superiore di Sanità, ISS), viale Regina Elena 299, Rome 00161, Italy. christian.napoli@iss.it.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Napoli
authors.affiliation: National Centre for Epidemiology, Surveillance and Health Promotion, National Institute of Health (Istituto Superiore di Sanità, ISS), viale Regina Elena 299, Rome 00161, Italy. mariagrazia.dente@iss.it.
authors.forename: Maria Grazia
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Dente
authors.affiliation: National Centre for Epidemiology, Surveillance and Health Promotion, National Institute of Health (Istituto Superiore di Sanità, ISS), viale Regina Elena 299, Rome 00161, Italy. tommi.karki@iss.it.|European Programme for Intervention Epidemiology Training (EPIET), European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), Tomtebodavägen 11a, Stockholm 17183, Sweden. tommi.karki@iss.it.
authors.forename: Tommi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kärki
authors.affiliation: National Centre for Epidemiology, Surveillance and Health Promotion, National Institute of Health (Istituto Superiore di Sanità, ISS), viale Regina Elena 299, Rome 00161, Italy. flavia.riccardo@iss.it.
authors.forename: Flavia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Riccardo
authors.affiliation: DG Communication and European and International Relations-Italian Ministry of Health, Lungotevere Ripa 1, Rome 00153, Italy. p.rossi@sanita.it.
authors.forename: Pasqualino
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rossi
authors.affiliation: National Centre for Epidemiology, Surveillance and Health Promotion, National Institute of Health (Istituto Superiore di Sanità, ISS), viale Regina Elena 299, Rome 00161, Italy. silvia.declich@iss.it.
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Declich
mesh_terms: D059038:Black Sea; D003141:Communicable Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants; D005060:Europe; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods*; D008522:Mediterranean Sea; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D062486:Public Health Surveillance / Q000379:methods*; D012036:Refugees
keywords: Mediterranean Basin and Black Sea; newly arrived migrants; screening for infectious diseases