IMPACT OF WEATHER CONDITION ON HEALTH OF REFUGEES AND MIGRANTS Flashcards
DEFINITON OF A MIGRANT
At the international level, there is no universally accepted definition of the term “migrant”.
Migrants may remain in the home country or host country (“settlers”), move on to another country (“transit migrants”), or move back and forth between countries (“circular migrants” such as seasonal workers).
Migrant is a person who moves away from his or her place of usual residence, within a country or across an international boarder temporarily or permanently.
MIGRATION? TYPES?
The movement of a person or a group of persons from one geographical unit to another for temporary or permanent settlement. Temporary travel abroad for purposes of recreation, holiday, business, medical treatment or religious pilgrimage does not entail an act of migration because there is no change in the country of usual residence.
Internal migration: moving within a state, country or continent
External migration: moving to a different state or country or continent
Emigration: leaving one country to move another country
Immigration: Moving into a new country
REFUGEE DEFINITION
A person who, owing to well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinions, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country.
INTERNATIONAL MIGRANTS IN EUROPE?
It is estimated that 75 million international migrants live in the European Region, amounting to 8.4% of the total European population and one third of all international migrants worldwide
UK MIGRATION PATTERN, 2019/2020
From March 2019 to March 2020 the United Kingdom received 708,000 migrants. Accounting for non-UK citizens who left the country, immigration increased the country’s population by 347,000 over this period.
- more immigrants than emigrants
HEALTHCARE ACCESS FOR REFUGEES AND MIGRANTS
Legal status is one of the most important determinants of the access of migrants to health services in a country.
Each refugee and migrant must have full, uninterrupted access to a hospitable environment and, when needed, to high-quality health care, without discrimination on the basis of gender, age, religion, nationality or race.
5 STEPS IN PH EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
prevention, protection, mitigation, response and recovery
WHAT CONTRIBUTES TO HIGH QUALITY CARE OF REFUGEES AND MIGRANTS
High-quality care for refugee and migrant groups cannot be ensured by health systems alone.
The social determinants of health, such as education, employment, social security and housing, all have a considerable impact on the health of migrants.
THE MAIN RISKS TO HUMAN HEALTH DUE TO CLIMATE CHANGE
The main risks to human health are:
•Effects of heat waves and other extreme events (cyclones, floods, storms, wildfires)
•Changes in patterns of infectious disease
•Effects on food yields
•Effects on freshwater supplies
•Impaired functioning of ecosystems (for example, wetlands as water filters)
•Displacement of vulnerable populations (for example, low lying island and coastal populations)
EXPLAIN THE FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO AN INDIVIDUAL’S VULNERABILITY TO HEALTH RIKS FROM CLIMATE CHANGE
Some groups of people are more vulnerable than others to health risks from climate change.Three factors contribute to vulnerability:
- sensitivity, which refers to the degree to which people or groups are affected by a stressor such as higher temperatures;
- exposure, which refers to physical contact between a person and a stressor;
- adaptive capacity, which refers to an ability to adjust to or avoid potential hazards
For example, while older adults are sensitive to extreme heat, an older person living in an air-conditioned apartment won’t be exposed as long as she stays indoors, and as long as she can afford to pay for the electricity to run the air conditioner. Her ability take these actions is a measure of her adaptive capacity.
IMPACT OF COLD WEATHER ON REFUGEES
When refugees and migrants sleep outdoor or in cold shelters at temperatures below 16 °C : prone to hypothermia, frost-bite and other poor health conditions.
Risk increases if they lack proper clothing, food and medical care.
The elderly, children, people with health problems and alcohol abusers are particularly vulnerable to the consequences of cold weather.
Hypothermia, or body temperature below 35.0 °C, is due to exposure to extreme cold or immersion in cold water and can compromise human vital functions.
Shivering is the first symptom as the body attempts to react by warming itself.
Frost-bite occurs when the skin and underlying tissues freeze due to exposure to cold air, wind and humidity.
Contact with cold objects or liquids, long exposure and inappropriate or wet clothing increase the severity of frost-bite. Frost-bite is most common in the fingers, toes, nose, ears, cheeks and chin.
Cold temperatures can increase the risks for fractures, sprains and strains from falls and accidents as well as cardiovascular, respiratory and mental health problems.
Severe bacterial and viral infections, such as respiratory diseases, are also more common in the winter and are increasingly associated with exposure to the cold.
Ice and snow can severely disrupt general transport, compromising access to roads and pavements, thus increasing the risk for accidents.
BODILY THERMAL CONTROL AND HYPOTHERMIA
The human body can be divided arbitrarily into two thermal compartments:
A core compartment (trunk & head) with precisely regulated temperature around 37 degrees Celsius
A peripheral compartment (skin & extremities) with less strictly controlled temperature than the core temperature
Thermoregulatory process occur in 3 phases:
Afferent thermal sensing
Central regulation (preoptic area of the hypothalamus)
Efferent response
Exposure to cold induces thermoregulatory responses including cutaneous vasoconstriction, shivering and non shivering thermogenesis and behavioral changes. Lowering of body temperature disrupts the physiological process at molecular, cellular and system level.
Hypothermia can be mild, moderate or severe. The signs of mild hypothermia are body temperature between 32.2-35 degrees Celsius, hypertension, tachycardia, tachypnoea, vasoconstriction and onset of fatigue (apathy & ataxia). Patients will present with tachycardia to bradycardia and to cardiac arrhythmias.
STAGES AND SYMPTOMS OF FROST BITE
The symptoms of frost-bite progress in 3 stages:
Thefrost bite can become worsen with the longer exposure to cold temperature
Early stage(frostnip): Pins and needle sensation, throbbing or aching in the affected area, skin become cold, numb and white, and feeling a tingling sensation.
This stage of frostbite is known as frostnip. The extremities, such as the fingers, nose,ears and toes are commonly affected.
Intermediate stage: After these early signs of frostbite, prolonged exposure to cold temperatures will cause more tissue damage. The affected area will feel hard and frozen. When you’re out of the cold and the tissue has thawed out, the skin will turn red and blister which can be painful. There will be swelling and itching.
This is known as superficial frostbite, as it affects the top layers of skin and tissue.
Advanced stage
When exposure to the cold continues, frostbite gets increasingly severe. The skin becomes white, blue or blotchy, and the tissue underneath feels hard and cold to touch.
Damage will occur beneath the skin to tendons, muscles, nerves and bones. This is known as deep frostbite and requires urgent medical attention.
As the skin thaws, blood-filled blisters form and turn into thick black scabs. This reflects the tissue necrosis.
The progress of the frost bite depending upon the extent of tissue damage after cold exposure. Initially there is an increase in viscosity of blood and extracellular fluid, followed by vasoconstriction of capillaries and blood vessels that lead to reduce blood supply to the tissue and finally stunting. This is followed by vasodilatation known as “hunting response”. The tissue undergoes further cooling and tends to shut the blood supply to the affected area and lead to avascular and ischemic environment resulting in severe tissue damage. This is a physiological response to protect extremities from cold injury. The tissue undergoes further cooling and tends to shut the blood supply to the affected area and lead to avascular necrosis and ischemic enviorenment resulting in severe tissue damage.
1ST SYMPTOMS OF HYPOTHERMIA?
SHIVERING
WHERE IS FROST BITE THE MOST COMMON?
Frost-bite is most common in the fingers, toes, nose, ears, cheeks and chin.
