TY - JOUR
T1 - Refugees in denver and their perceptions of their health and health care
AU - Elwell, David
AU - Junker, Sarah
AU - Sillau, Stefan
AU - Aagaard, Eva
PY - 2014/2
Y1 - 2014/2
N2 - Background. Colorado receives approximately 2,500 refugees each year from countries all over the world. We assessed the self-perceived health of and barriers to care for refugees in the Denver metro area in order to understand better the needs of this population. Methods. A 61-item questionnaire was completed by a convenience sample of 120 local refugees between June and December of 2009. Results. Only 10% of respondents reported their health as excellent, while 31% rated it as either poor or fair. The most prominent barriers to care included unemployment (91%), language (46%), lack of health insurance (41%), lack of transportation (43%), and distrust of doctors (22%). Conclusions. Our study suggests that refugees in Denver face significant barriers that affect their access to health care. Recommendations include improved job and language skill programs, a health navigator program, and health care provider training on culturally effective care of this population.
AB - Background. Colorado receives approximately 2,500 refugees each year from countries all over the world. We assessed the self-perceived health of and barriers to care for refugees in the Denver metro area in order to understand better the needs of this population. Methods. A 61-item questionnaire was completed by a convenience sample of 120 local refugees between June and December of 2009. Results. Only 10% of respondents reported their health as excellent, while 31% rated it as either poor or fair. The most prominent barriers to care included unemployment (91%), language (46%), lack of health insurance (41%), lack of transportation (43%), and distrust of doctors (22%). Conclusions. Our study suggests that refugees in Denver face significant barriers that affect their access to health care. Recommendations include improved job and language skill programs, a health navigator program, and health care provider training on culturally effective care of this population.
KW - Communication barriers
KW - Health care disparities
KW - Health services accessibility
KW - Refugees
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84893518186&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1353/hpu.2014.0032
DO - 10.1353/hpu.2014.0032
M3 - Article
C2 - 24509016
AN - SCOPUS:84893518186
SN - 1049-2089
VL - 25
SP - 128
EP - 141
JO - Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved
JF - Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved
IS - 1
ER -