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Sexual health handbook for people working with refugees and asylum seekers
Send off for free copies of Sexual health, asylum seekers and refugees.
The FPA publication Sexual health, asylum seekers and refugees a handbook for people working with refugees and asylum seekers in England has developed from the concerns of asylum seekers and refugees. In 2001, the North East Public Health Observatory, the Health Development Agency North East and the Scarman Trust funded a feasibility study looking into the need for materials to help a range of health and refugee workers address sexual health issues. The main findings of this study were that:
- little research had been done on the sexual health needs and concerns of asylum seekers and refugees
- health professionals and others were concerned about a number of sexual health issues affecting asylum seekers and refugees
- some practical initiatives were being developed at a local level to promote sexual health among refugee communities, but these were isolated and lacked access to resources and links to similar projects
- many professionals felt uncertain how to start raising sexual health issues
- people were also conscious of the negative labelling of refugees and asylum seekers
- asylum seekers and refugees interviewed wanted to have greater access to sexual health information, and health professionals
- refugee workers and others interviewed wanted to do more to improve sexual health among refugee communities.
FPA Asylum Seekers and Refugees Sexual Health Project
As a result of the feasibility study, three organisations – the Centre for HIV and Sexual Health, FPA and tandem communications and research – set up the Asylum Seekers and Refugees Sexual Health Project in 2002, in order to carry out community research, and produce a practical handbook – Sexual health, asylum seekers and refugees: a handbook for people working with refugees and asylum seekers in England. The handbook and community research have been funded by the Department of Health.
Sexual health in exile
For the community research component of the Asylum Seekers and Refugees Sexual Health Project, the Centre for HIV and Sexual Health and tandem recruited and trained refugee community researchers who carried out interviews and focus groups in Yorkshire in 2004. You can read the results in the community research report – Sexual health in exile, the sexual health concerns, issues and needs of refugees and asylum seekers in South and West Yorkshire: a community research report.
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