Migration and child health: the Dutch experience

Nearly one million of the fifteen million inhabitants of the Netherlands are directly descending from migrant parents. Of these inhabitants, 75% come from former colonies (Surinam and the Netherlands Antilles) and Mediterranean countries like Turkey and Morocco. The mortality rate of Turkish and Moroccan children under 15 years of age is two to three times higher compared to Dutch children. Main causes are perinatal death (including congenital malformations), accidents and drowning, infectious diseases and death during holidays in the country of origin. Inequalities in health between the migrant and Dutch children are demonstrated in several surveys conducted at both national and local levels. Apart from socio-economic differences, this can be attributed to three main causes; different pathology due to imported infectious diseases or inherited disorders, different life style and socio-cultural factors. The cumulative factor explains the differences in health, comparable with several other countries in Europe where migrants from Mediterranean countries and former colonies live.

Migration has an increasing impact on the daily practice of Dutch paediatricians as well as elsewhere in Europe. Inclusion of intercultural and international aspects of health in the curriculum of the medical paediatric education is paramount.