FAMILY HEALTH AND WELLBEING COSLA/Queen Margaret University 12 October 2015 Refugee Integration: Research Perspectives to Inform Practice

OVERVIEW 1.Health and Wellbeing Issues 2.Family Separation and Reunion 3.Responses

Research reports 1. “We started life again”: Integration experiences of refugees reuniting in Glasgow a)common barriers and structural obstacles to integration for families b)how dynamics within the family affect integration experiences 2. Health and wellbeing of refugee families a)risk factors for poor health and wellbeing b)‘resilience’ factors and coping mechanisms

What are the issues?  Health and wellbeing issues in Syrian families:  physical injuries and trauma from bombings;  physical and mental health difficulties from experiences of torture;  severe psychological distress or trauma that continued to disrupt everyday life;  and/or chronic health conditions exacerbated because of lack of access to health facilities.

Risk and resilience factors Risk factorsResilience factor Home country  Detention/Torture  Violent conflict (trauma/fear)  Loss of friends/relatives  Sexual and gender based violence  Existing poor physical &mental health  Family support  Religious faith  Employment/livelihood  Wider social networks (Separation Period)  Changed family roles/responsibilities  Displacement to 3 rd country  Poverty/financial stress  Not knowing where relatives are  Isolation/loss of support networks  Support of extended family  Religious faith/community support  Communication with separated family members  Remittances In the UK  Integration challenges  Isolation/loss of support networks  Poverty/destitution  On-going separation from family  Homelessness/overcrowding  Religious faith/community  Reunion with family  New activities and routines  Social connections and peer support  Support from organisations

Family separation and reunion  Family Separation  Negative impacts on wellbeing include: anxiety, guilt, ambiguous loss, and disrupted family roles.  Refugees described living in limbo and struggling to engage with daily activities.  Family Reunion  Reunion with family members reduce stress and enhances emotional support and coping resources.  Problems can occur renegotiating relationships e.g. parent/child bonding difficulties, family break-up or domestic violence

Health & Wellbeing and Integration  Integration difficulties impact on health and wellbeing – e.g. unemployment, language difficulties, poor housing, poverty/financial difficulties And…  Poor health and wellbeing hinder wider integration (at both individual and family level)  Therefore important to have resources and integration support in place

Framework of needs & responses  Importance broader psychosocial framework

What can we do?  Community-based psychosocial activities which enable people to:  actively participate,  re-establish everyday routines  build networks of emotional and practical support are beneficial for a majority of families.  Drawing on resources within communities is important to foster resilience

Red Cross role in family reunion  Mandate under Geneva Conventions and additional protocols to reunite separated families  Family tracing and reuniting families through international Restoring Family Links network  Family reunion work in Scotland since April 2011 and Integration Service for reunited families

Further resources  Red Cross research reports:  Health and wellbeing of refugee families reuniting in Glasgow (forthcoming)  “We started life again”: integration experiences of refugee families reuniting in Glasgow  UNHCR research report:  Culture, context and the mental health and psychosocial wellbeing of Syrians  Red Cross Restoring Family Links services  IFRC Psychosocial Resource Centre:  Strengthening Resilience  Broken Links: Psychosocial support for people separated from family members  MHPSS website - mhpss.net - library of resources, guidelines and resource peoplemhpss.net

ADDITIONAL DETAILS

Research approach  BRM/Casework – 50 families/123 people  Integration interviews –14 families/ 45 people  Comparative group West Yorkshire  FFT family group sessions – 4 families/5 sessions  Follow up wellbeing interviews – 2 family interviews