Mandatory detention of refugee children: A public health issue?

The profession calls for humane treatment of asylum seekers.

any of us are deeply ashamed of the way Australia treats asylum seekers. Our politicians and media obsess about the way they reach our shores, but, as doctors, our role is to care for them and to advocate for their best interests. We have become increasingly concerned about their wellbeing. The editorial by Newman and colleagues in this issue supports the investigation by the Commonwealth Ombud...

Australia's treatment of refugee and asylum seeker children: the views of Australian paediatricians.

OBJECTIVE Australia's response to refugees and people seeking asylum is a matter of national debate. We sought to determine the knowledge and attitudes of paediatricians about refugee and asylum seeker issues (both onshore and offshore). DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS In November 2013, we emailed a questionnaire web link to all Australian general and community paediatricians registered with...

A child in detention: dilemmas faced by health professionals.

A 6-year-old child, held in detention with his parents pending the outcome of their application for refugee status, manifested psychological distress by repeated episodes of refusing to eat or drink. This case presented clinical and ethical dilemmas for health professionals who were constrained from acting in the child's best interests by government policy of mandatory detention.

Medical and social issues of child refugees in Europe.

In mid-2015, there were an estimated 20.2 million refugees in the world; over half of them are children. Globally, this is the highest number of refugees moving across borders in 20 years. The rights of refugee children to access healthcare and be free from arbitrary detention are enshrined in law. Unaccompanied asylum-seeking children have a statutory medical assessment, but refugee children a...

Detention, denial, and death: migration hazards for refugee children.