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About this episode

For this episode we bring you a topic that rarely reaches the top of the global health agenda, that is the subject of the health of refugees and migrants. This podcast episode lays out the key issues for the listener and through our guests it builds an awareness to ensure this topic gets better attention in the future. Guests, Reem Mussa and Eugen Ghita, share their expertise and lived experiences with our host, Garry Aslanyan.

During this podcast we hear the health experiences of Eugen Ghita, Human Rights Monitor and President from Roma Lawyers Association, Romania RomaJust, who was a migrant and he is now working as a human rights monitor on behalf of the Roma community in Europe. Eugen identified that there is a lack of information dedicated to the refugees and many language barriers. 

Reem Mussa, Humanitarian Advisor and Coordinator of the Forced Migration Team at Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), is able to give us context in relation to the policies of the different types of refugees and migrants, including the repercussions for the health of the newcomers may encounter on their journey such as mental health needs or respiratory conditions for those subjected to detention. These preventable health conditions and lack of primary health care provision may possibly have a long-term impact on the individual's health which may lead to an additional burden on their host country in the future. Many countries do allow for access to health care regardless of the legal status of people, but not all, some may only provide for emergency healthcare. MSF promotes the importance of a separation between border control/ immigration schemes and healthcare access, as some migrants without right to remain may fear authorities or deportation and so not access healthcare for that reason.