Journal of Refugee Studies
Volume 31, Issue 4, 2018, Pages 466-487

Sleepless nights because of ethical dilemmas in mental health care for asylum seekers (Article)

Kramer S.A.* , Olsman E. , Hoogsteder M.H.H. , Van Willigen L.H.M.
  • a University of Utrecht, Utrecht, Netherlands
  • b Leiden University Medical Center, Section of Ethics and Law of Healthcare, Leiden, Netherlands, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Department of General Practice, Section of Medical Ethics, Amsterdam, Netherlands
  • c Department of Public and Occupational Health, Amsterdam Public Health Research Institute, VU University Medical Center, Netherlands
  • d Johannes Wier Foundation for Health and Human Rights, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Abstract

The number of asylum requests in the Netherlands in 2015 was relatively high but comparable to 20 years ago. This article compares the social, political and cultural factors in mental health professionals' ethical dilemmas and reflections in both periods. The data consists of papers from an expert meeting in 1995 on Medical Ethical Standards in Mental Health Care for Refugees, and interviews and focus groups with health professionals on ethical dilemmas in mental health care for asylum seekers in 2015. Using a discursive approach to analyse the data, we found that, in 1995, as well as in 2015, the deliberations of mental health professionals reveal medical, social, cultural and judicial paradigms. In 2015, political factors tend to weigh more heavily than in 1995. We conclude that, in both periods, mental health professionals experience conflicts of values but the context of care for asylum seekers changed. © The Author(s) 2018. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.

Author Keywords

Asylum seekers human rights Mental health Ethical dilemmas Discourse analysis

Index Keywords

Netherlands refugee health care human rights asylum seeker mental health ethics
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85060890205&doi=10.1093%2fjrs%2ffex039&partnerID=40&md5=52fc23f1e94782a4db696d423f300a42
DOI: 10.1093/jrs/fex039
ISSN: 09516328
Original Language: English