Upon Rejection: Psychiatric Emergencies of Failed Asylum Seekers

Georgios Schoretsanitis, Dinesh Bhugra, Sarah Eisenhardt, Meret E. Ricklin, David S. Srivastava, Aristomenis Exadaktylos and Sebastian Walther
Additional contact information
Georgios Schoretsanitis: University Hospital of Psychiatry, 3008 Bern, Switzerland
Dinesh Bhugra: Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London, De Crespigny Park, London SE5 8AF, UK
Sarah Eisenhardt: University Hospital of Psychiatry, 3008 Bern, Switzerland
Meret E. Ricklin: Department of Emergency Medicine, Inselspital, University Hospital Bern, Freiburgstrasse, 3010 Bern, Switzerland
David S. Srivastava: Department of Emergency Medicine, Inselspital, University Hospital Bern, Freiburgstrasse, 3010 Bern, Switzerland
Aristomenis Exadaktylos: Department of Emergency Medicine, Inselspital, University Hospital Bern, Freiburgstrasse, 3010 Bern, Switzerland
Sebastian Walther: University Hospital of Psychiatry, 3008 Bern, Switzerland

IJERPH, 2018, vol. 15, issue 7, 1-9

Abstract: Background: The status of a refugee or asylum seeker is only recognised after legal processes. The uncertainty of these procedures or the rejection itself may severely impact mental well-being. Methods: We surveyed the patterns of psychiatric services used by patients whose applications for asylum had been rejected. In a retrospective investigation of admissions to the University Emergency Department in Bern, Switzerland between 1 March 2012 and 28 February 2017, we studied patients receiving a psychiatric consultation after their applications had been rejected. The primary endpoint was based on the comparison of these individuals with controls who were asylum seekers with pending asylum applications using the Mann-Whitney U test and the chi-square test (χ 2 ) with a significance level of 0.05. Results: Thirty-eight cases were identified. There were more men than women and the mean age was 30.08 ± 9.62 years. Patients predominantly presented as walk-in patients ( n = 16, 42.1%), most frequently due to suicidal ideation ( n = 16, 42.1%). Stress-related disorders were the most common diagnosis ( n = 29, 76.3%) and patients were mainly referred to inpatient treatment ( n = 28, 73.7%). Patients with rejected applications were less likely to be living in reception centres than patients with a pending application (χ 2 = 17.98, p < 0.001). Conclusion : The profile of asylum seekers whose applications had been rejected reflects individuals with high-stress levels, potentially aggravated by the negative asylum decision.

Keywords: failed asylum seekers; psychiatric emergency services; psychiatric hospitalisation; acute stress (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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