GPs need training and funding in caring for refugees and asylum seekers

doi:10.1136/bmj.328.7442.770

BMJ 2004;328:770 (27 March), doi:10.1136/bmj.328.7442.770

Letter

GPs need training and funding in caring for refugees and asylum seekers

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR—UK asylum seekers and refugees have the same rightsto health care as the settled population. None the less, refugeesreport difficulties accessing health care—for example,in registering with a general practitioner.¹ They are also sometimesregistered as temporary residents, which is detrimental forcontinuity of care.²

We sent a postal questionnaire to all 129 general practitionersin Lothian, an area in Scotland with an estimated 3000 refugees.It focused on the need for extra funding for general practiceswith refugees, the best place for providing primary care services,and the need for training.

Ninety five responses were received (a response rate of 73.6%).The table summarises the results (see bmj.com for more details).³

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British general practitioners' experiences, training, behaviour, and views on aspects of care for refugees and asylum seekers

About one third of general practitioners had treated refugees,but few staff had undergone training. Of 82 . . . [Full text of this article]

Srinivasa Vittal Katikireddi, final year medical student

22 Appletree Close, Liverpool L18 9XN S.V.Katikireddi@sms.ed.ac.uk

Raj Bhopal, professor of public health

Public Health Sciences Section, Division of Community Health Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH8 9AG raj.bhopal@ed.ac.uk

Julia A Quickfall, nurse director

Queen's Nursing Institute Scotland, Edinburgh EH1 2EL