Mental Health Support Immigrants

America has been a melting pot of cultures for many centuries, with the number of immigrants continually rising every year. Most of these immigrants come into the country with nothing at all except for the clothes on their backs and a few English words. But they also bring with them something special – their cultures and traditions from their homeland. In the Immigrant Advantage, readers can see that these specific traditions that they bring with them give them an advantage because they tend to have better mental and physical health than their native born American counterparts (5).

Depression and the Struggle for Survival. (2005, April 20).Immigration. Retrieved August 10, 2008, from The Library of

America needs comprehensive health care reform, and immigrants should be a part of the movement.  But many American citizens might ask that pertinent question: why should they cover the expense for illegal immigrants to access health care?  The answer is plain and simple: until congress passes immigration laws that work, people are going to migrant here illegally.  And to deny migrants access to affordable health care, Americans are not only denying them their human right, they are also putting individual and national health at risk.  I believe that this country – which has the medical advancements and the facilities to ensure the health of its citizens – should reach out to its non-citizens, legal and illegal, until it

Mental health is a person’s emotional and physiological well-being; some immigrants come to the country hoping for an easier and happier life, however, this is not always the case. As stated previously in lecture, assimilating to a new language, new food, and different cultural norms can be mentally draining. Experiences like exposure to war, death of loved ones, violence, oppression, and torture will likely make one mentally unstable and further complicates the resettlement process. The process of assimilating into a new cultural is mentally taxing to the soul, you are having to throw away all that you know and create a facade in order to be accepted. In my opinion, refugees and immigrants display poor mental health on arrival due to a combination

There are many vulnerable populations within the United States. One of the many vulnerable populations are undocumented immigrants. Undocumented immigrants also known as illegal immigrants according to Wikipedia (2016) is defined as “the migration of people across national boarders in a way that violates the immigration laws of the destination country” (para 1). The United States of America has one of the largest population of immigrants. In this paper, I will be discussing the multiple stressors related to undocumented immigrants as well as the programs that can be used to help alleviate those stressors.

In an article that looked at the immigrant healthcare needs of the United States, Dudas (2012) found that

The lack of mental health care services for minorities is a long-standing problem in the United States. The first time the issue received attention was in 1985, when the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released a report that described serious health discrepancies that minority populations were enduring. In 1986, because of this report, the Office of Minority Health was formed to assist in the reduction of the health care shortages for

Health care is one of the most controversial and discussed topics in the United States. This is mainly because of the enormous issues that surround this subject matter, such as the goal of creating a greater diversity in the medical professions, the goal to reduce health care disparities, and mainly to improve health care for all. In my personal experience this issues have affected me and my family very closely. As immigrants, I saw my parents struggle with the language, adapting to a new culture and even seeking healthcare. Health care disparities is an imminent issue that affects many of us, including me. On top of the financial struggle my parents faced as immigrants, they also faced the barrier of not being understood. I witnessed how my

There have been legislative bills that have limited the access that illegal immigrants have to medical care, whether it be private insurance or with federal help such as state funded resources like Medical. For example the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 restricts medical care for illegal immigrants. Jeffrey Kullgren a medical student at the Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, argues that having severe limitations on health care services threatens the public’s health. He argues that the original purposes of the act were to reduce illegal immigration and preserve resources yet the act burdens health care providers and endangers the public’s health. The act stated that it was made in order to “remove the incentive for illegal immigration” and so that “individual aliens not burden the public benefits system”. These were the argument made in order to place eligibility restrictions for service made available by the local, state and federal governments. Although there were exceptions to the act, such as being able to get emergency care and immunizations, it still made getting proper health care very difficult. Placing these kinds of restrictions on people Kullgren argues has consequences on health. One is that it leads to greater waiting times and increase cost which reduces the efficiency of medical facilities. Another is that it can affect the lives of the American born children of immigrants. Although they are able to receive medical services, their parents are afraid to seek health care because they believe that they can get deported. Or they are not sure of whether their children are able to get medical coverage. Another negative result due to the act, Kullgren states, is that public resources are not being effectively used. It costs more to treat emergency situations that could have been easily prevented or that could have

According to Shattell et al. (2008), there is a notable discrepancy between Latinos’ that are in need of services and the actual utilization of services. This week’s readings provided much insight as to why Latinos underutilize mental health services. On an individual level one must consider how a person’s belief system will affect treatment. According to Shattell et al. (2008), Latinos often view mental illness as being caused by a curse and other evil spirits. They do not see their symptoms as signs of a mental illness, so in turn they would not seek services. Shattell et al. (2008) further explains that Latinos are often suspicious and guarded about disclosing their symptoms to practitioners. This can prevent a practitioner from providing

Whether legal or illegal, when migrating from their homeland, regardless of their individual circumstances, immigrants face a number of challenges en route to, and upon arrival into the United States. It is common knowledge that immigrants face language barriers, basic cultural differences, emotional isolation, prejudice and discrimination upon their arrival into the United States. Dr. Jean Rhodes points out that due to their exclusion from public services, [undocumented] immigrants typically settle in areas of deep poverty plagued with inadequate services in addition to substandard living conditions and schools (2005). However, the most difficult and detrimental issue they face is their access to receiving public health care. In his 2003 article in the American Journal of Public Health, Jeffrey Kullgren points out that many of the undocumented immigrants in

Research indicates that immigrant groups are likely to develop Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PSTD) at varying degrees irrespective of whether they are voluntary migrants or refugees. However, refugees are known to suffer higher rates of mental health disorders ranging from PSTD to depression (Rasmussen et al., 2012). It is also known that refugees are likely to have more pre-migration risk for trauma than voluntary immigrants. Even though most refugees flee their home countries to reduce the risk of distress, research indicates that the well-being of such immigrants deteriorates with increasing time spent in the host countries

Nursing is generally viewed as a simple profession where you learn to take blood pressure, temperature, and smile. However, in reality, nurses are the most reliable people the vulnerable population trust during the time of need. The vulnerable population includes the mentally challenged, the unborn, those with few financial or social resources and those with cases as the incarcerated and the immigrants. The nurses also play an important role in promoting social justices. The nurses apply the ethical principles of justice to care for this venerable population with very limited funds. To provide nursing care to this population, nurses avoid to be judgmental and focus on caring for the client as a person not a criminal in order to deliver effective nursing care. For example a study conducted by Kim-Lu, D. (2015).found that despite the expected impact of the Affordable Care Act in reducing uninsured rates, future efforts to remedy the barriers to access to healthcare for the Asian American subgroups will require a multifaceted approach that moves towards integrating vulnerable populations, such as immigrants, into the mainstream healthcare system and establishes targeted interventions such as language assistance and comprehensive case management services.

In 2010, ANA released a brief stating their stance on access to health care for both documented and undocumented immigrants residing in the states. In the brief, the group asserts that health care is a basic human right. They state that “immigrants, whether documented or not, should have access to quality health care including the opportunity to purchase insurance” (Godfrey, 2010). Undocumented immigrants do not seek medical assistance to manage chronic illness for fear of deportation and cost. This means their health status will continue to deteriorate and the cost to provide treatment will skyrocket. “Limiting adequate health care leads to increases in health care costs and possible health risks” (Godfrey, 2010). At this time, this population is only eligible to apply for charity care at local acute care facilities and one time only emergency Medicaid, burdening the taxpayer. Allowing people to purchase their own health insurance will lower the cost in health care (Godfrey,

The research clearly shows how ethnicity and citizenship status is directly tied to an individual’s health status and health care experiences (Holmes, 1787-88). We know that immigration to USA is regulated by law. The political hierarchy has framed the legal law in such a way that immigrants do not enjoy the same privileges as citizens. The apparent differences between people who are citizens and non-citizens is so inherent, that the disadvantaged non-citizens accept it with little outlet for protest. Since it is the law of the land, non-citizens willingly accepts the structural violence inflicted upon them due to immigration related issues.