Migration and health-the international perspective

Mass movement of people is not a new phenomenon. There are significant differences, however, between contemporary migration and that of yesterday. Modern communication and transportation makes it possible for people and their health problems to travel further and more quickly than ever before. The Plan of Action produced by the 1994 International Conference on Population in Cairo estimates that there are 125 million migrants world-wide. The cause of concern is not only linked to the numbers, but also to the new patterns and categories of migrants that give the strong feeling that the problem is getting out of control. This presents a challenge which urgently asks for response and action on various levels including health and social services. European states started to develop policies that would link immigration to health care policies. "Health for All" strategies, only towards the end of the 1980s, if at all. There are six areas, where health policies and programmes explicitly should take the needs of the immigrants into consideration: (1) communication and understanding, (2) control of infectious diseases, (3) mother and child care, (4) occupational health, (5) violence and (6) health indicators among migrants. To improve the health status of migrant families immigrant receiving countries need to put ethnic policies high on the public health agenda, they need to provide adequate health services to immigrants and there is a crucial need for training and preparing health professionals to understanding perspectives that differ from their own ethnic orientation, and to provide adequate and effective responses.