Development and evaluation of a web-based capacity building course in the EUR-HUMAN project to support primary health care professionals in the provision of high-quality care for refugees and migrants

Abstract

Background: The ongoing refugee crisis has revealed the need for enhancing primary health care (PHC) professionals’ skills and training. Objectives: The aim was to strengthen PHC professionals in European countries in the provision of high-quality care for refugees and migrants by offering a concise modular training that was based on the needs of the refugees and PHC professionals as shown by prior research in the EUR-HUMAN project. Methods: We developed, piloted, and evaluated an online capacity building course of 8 stand-alone modules containing information about acute health issues of refugees, legal issues, provider–patient communication and cultural aspects of health and illness, mental health, sexual and reproductive health, child health, chronic diseases, health promotion, and prevention. The English course template was translated into seven languages and adapted to the local contexts of six countries. Pre- and post-completion knowledge tests were administered to effectively assess the progress and knowledge increase of participants so as to issue CME certificates. An online evaluation survey post completion was used to assess the acceptability and practicability of the course from the participant perspective. These data were analyzed descriptively. Results: A total of 390 participants registered for the online course in 6 countries with 175 completing all modules of the course, 47.7 % of them medical doctors. The mean time for completion was 10.77 hours. In total, 123 participants completed the online evaluation survey; the modules on acute health needs, legal issues (both 44.1%), and provider–patient communication/cultural issues (52.9%) were found particularly important for the daily practice. A majority expressed a will to promote the online course among their peers. Conclusion: This course is a promising learning tool for PHC professionals and when relevant supportive conditions are met. The course has the potential to empower PHC professionals in their work with refugees and other migrants.

What do women want? Migrant and refugee women’s preferences for the delivery of sexual and reproductive healthcare and information

“…Previous research has highlighted that healthcare professionals may feel under-prepared to treat migrant and refugee women, requiring further education and training to strengthen their ability to support women's SRH in a clinical context (Mengesha et al 2018). Training could include addressing culturally specific issuessuch as female genital cutting (Ogunsiji and Ussher 2021) and acute SRH issues faced by migrant and refugee women, as well as strategies for effective provider-patient communication (Jirovsky et al 2018). To ensure clinicians have understanding of the complexities of migrant and refugee women's SRH, education about SHR should also be introduced as an integral part of undergraduate medical school curriculum.…”

Improving primary health care quality for refugees and asylum seekers: A systematic review of interventional approaches

“…The studies rated highly on a clear statement of research aims and appropriate study design descriptions to address the stated aims, and yet, generally received an average or low score for description of the data collection methods 25–44 . The majority of the studies received low scores (0–1/3) on criteria related to sampling 25,27–68 and evidence of research stakeholders' involvement in the research design and conduct (0–1/3). We did not exclude studies based on the quality assessment; rather, the quality assessment data were used simply to indicate the strength of the available evidence.…”

“…Of the total of 55 studies included in the review, the majority n = 35 were from North America (United States and Canada) 25–30,34,35,37,39–42,44–47,49,51,52,54–57,59,62,65,66,69–75 ; 14 were from countries in Europe including the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden and Italy 31–33,38,48,53,60,61,63,64,68,76–78 ; and 6 were from Australia 36,43,50,58,67,79 . All articles were published between 1992 and 2020.…”

The COVID-19 Pandemic and Refugees in Greece: A New Challenge for Healthcare Service Provision, Public Health Programmes and Policymaking

“…In the framework of the EUR-HUMAN project, an online capacity building course of eight stand-alone modules were developed, piloted and evaluated. It contained information about acute health issues of refugees, legal issues, providerpatient communication and cultural aspects of health and illness, mental health, sexual and reproductive health, child health, chronic diseases, health promotion, and prevention (Jirovsky et al, 2018). One hundred and seventy five (175) participants completed all modules of the online course in six countries, 47.7% being medical doctors.…”