Question

Immigrants and refugees face an inordinate amount of challenges when adjusting to a new country. What are some of the things service providers need to consider?

Dr. Clare Pain, Staff Psychiatrist, Mount Sinai Hospital and Professor of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, writes:

My top five suggestions:

• Millions want to come to Canada but only a relative few manage it, so immigrants and refugees who get here are remarkable people and incredibly resilient especially if given the chance to use settlement services.
• Immigrants and refugees come to Canada with "unquenchable hope", in the words of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
• Most immigrants and refugees suffer a degree of distress because coming to Canada is coming to an entirely new and strange system/people that they must figure out in order to build a new life.
• Don’t worry about post-traumatic stress disorder/mental illness because it’s unlikely that refugees suffer from these. But help them problem solve their current situation to alleviate their distress.
• Ensure the newcomer has a primary health care practitioner and a good lawyer if they are a refugee claimant.

Vanessa Wright, Nurse Practitioner, Crossroads Refugee Health Clinic, writes:

Connect newcomers to primary care, a medical doctor or nurse practitioner, who can be their family care provider. This is often the gateway into many services that support overall health and wellbeing, housing, food, work etc.

Support newcomers with various opportunities to check-in or touch base with you fairly often. Create opportunities to gather feedback from your patients. This can be quality improvement surveys to make sure you're meeting the needs of the population in an iterative manner.

Build a network for yourself and create a community of practice for you to reach out to and troubleshoot various scenarios; broaden your understanding and awareness of community supports as well.

Bonnie Wong, Executive Director (former), Hong Fook Mental Health Association, writes:

As a service provider, we are encouraged to provide clinically and culturally appropriate services to the clients so that they can feel connected, welcomed and supported. It is important to provide individuals with accurate information and resources, conduct intake and assessments in a timely manner, make appropriate referrals and do follow-ups. The goal is to improve client satisfaction and service outcomes. Every single encounter and intervention matters.