The number of refugees in Western Europe has risen dramatically. Such an increase poses unique challenges for all health personnel. This paper describes how the Republic of Ireland, a country with little experience of refugees, initially coped with 178 Bosnian refugees. An open-access general practitioner service was combined with a general screening protocol. Patients with significant problems tended to visit GP's, for appropriate treatment, soon after arrival. Of a total of 92 problems diagnosed at screening, general medical (14%), psychiatric (14%) and gynaecological (11%) were the most frequently encountered. Of the 30 problems referred, 80% were referred by a GP. Deficiencies in immunisation and drug history are highlighted. We make recommendations to improve the quality of future initial refugee assessment procedures.

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refugee mass screening human Refugees middle aged Bosnia and Herzegovina ethnology Bosnia-Herzegovina Humans Ireland Adolescent male preschool child female Infant Child, Preschool Article adult Child