Coalition Building for Health: A Community Garden Pilot Project with Apartment Dwelling Refugees

Abstract

Refugees often experience compromised health from both pre- and post-migration stressors. Coalition theory has helped guide the development of targeted programs to address the health care needs of vulnerable populations. Using the Community Coalition Action Theory as a framework, a coalition was formed to implement a community garden with apartment-dwelling refugees. Outcomes included successful coalition formation, a community garden, reported satisfaction from all gardeners with increased vegetable intake, access to culturally meaningful foods, and evidence of increased community engagement. The opportunity for community health nurses to convene a coalition to affect positive health for refugees is demonstrated.

Community-Based Healthcare for Migrants and Refugees: A Scoping Literature Review of Best Practices

“…Publications in this category are studies focusing on health promotion and access to care, mainly implemented in the USA (19/36), Europe (12/36), and Canada (2/36), and in Australia (2/36) and Asia (1/36), mostly in between 2007–2018 [ 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , 89 , 90 , 91 , 92 , 93 , 94 , 95 , 96 , 97 , 98 , 99 ]. The populations addressed included racial and ethnic minorities; migrants (further specified as elderly, farm workers, or irregular); refugees (Syrian, apartment-dwelling, youth, older adult, and more); immigrants (elderly or recent); and minority children.…”

“…Single interventions that emerged constituted of: providing health information [ 64 , 65 ], cultural brokering through ambassadors [ 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 ], bilingual advocacy and interpretation [ 73 , 74 ], and a community garden project addressing a sense of community and adoption of a healthy dietary pattern [ 75 ]. Complex interventions, on the other hand, concerned community-academic partnerships [ 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 ], community-based nursing initiatives [ 82 , 83 , 84 ], home-based health services [ 83 ], programs on prevention, and healthcare services for the uninsured [ 85 ].…”

A Scoping Review and Conceptual Model of Social Participation and Mental Health among Refugees and Asylum Seekers

“…Also, psychological well-being was found to be enriched by community support programs [55] and recognition of one’s human capital [48]. Participation in social activities such as religious activities was associated with a sense of acceptance of one’s life situation [82], and community gardening was associated with increased social support and a sense of hope [92].…”

Placemaking in Action: Factors That Support or Obstruct the Development of Urban Community Gardens

“…On the other hand, having sufficient participants in the form of volunteers [105,126] or paid professionals, including professional gardeners [84,85,126], was identified as an enabling factor in 15 papers. Eight New Zealand and two German interviewees supported this view.…”

“…On the other hand, having access to funding was the second most relevant enabling factor in the literature. Ongoing funding strategies [67]; diverse pathways to access funding, including donations [56,70,84,98,107]; financial support by umbrella organisations [54]; nonprofit status [93]; and even community-based participatory research [95] were considered as enablers. Funding or the lack of it was also considered as enabler or barrier in 19 of our cases-predominantly from New Zealand: "They [city council] provide a little bit of funding which isn't a lot really .…”