Treatment

Articles

Does Integrated Care Affect Healthcare Utilization in Multi-problem Refugees?

Carol C. White, Craig A. Solid, James S. Hodges, Deborah H. Boehm. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, August 2014.

A history of trauma is common in refugee populations and appropriate treatment is frequently avoided. Using a convenience sample of 64 patients in a Somali primary care clinic, a culture and trauma specific intervention was developed to address retention into appropriate treatment.

Head and Neck Sequelae of Torture

Di Loreto, Christina, Shaulnie N. Mohan BS, Sondra S. Crosby MD, Jeffrey H. Spiegel MD. The Laryngoscope. Volume 119, Issue Supplement S1, page S38, 2009

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: To increase awareness of torture among otolaryngologists, and to describe methods and complications of head and neck torture.

STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective review.

METHODS: Five cases of survivors of torture were evaluated in an otolaryngology practice in an urban hospital setting.

RESULTS: The subjects presented with widely variable symptoms and physical manifestations related to the head and neck as a result of torture, in

How Pelvic Health Physical Therapists Can Help with Sexual Dysfunction in Men

A Review of “The Role in Pelvic Floor Muscles in Male Sexual Dysfunction and Pelvic Pain” Cohen, D., Gonzalez, J., & Goldstein, I. (2016).

Much of the research on male sexual dysfunction has previously been focused on neurological or vascular causes. More recently, studies have turned their focus to the involvement of the pelvic floor. The pelvic floor helps to stabilize the internal organs and gives bowel and bladder control.

Management of Acute Stress, PTSD, and Bereavement: WHO Recommendations

"To inform development of a new module on conditions specifically related to stress, WHO developed new guidelines to be released this week4 for the following symptoms occurring in the first month after trauma exposure: acute traumatic stress symptoms, insomnia, enuresis, dissociative symptoms, and hyperventilation (Table). In addition, guidelineswere developed for posttraumaticstressdisorder(PTSD) and bereavement.These conditionswerechosenfor their relevance in nonspecialized health settings.

Primary Care Management of Non–English-Speaking Refugees Who Have Experienced Trauma: A Clinical Review

This article, by Sandra Crosby, MD, is attached, or available for subscribers through JAMA.

Importance  Refugees are a vulnerable class of immigrants who have fled their countries, typically following war, violence, or natural disaster, and who have frequently experienced trauma. In primary care, engaging refugees to develop a positive therapeutic relationship is challenging. Relative to care of other primary care patients, there are important differences in symptom evaluation and developing treatment plans.

Objectives  To discuss the importance of and methods for obtaining refugee trauma

Psychological assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of torture survivors: a review

Campbell, Thomas. Clinical Psychology Review. Volume 27, Issue 5, June 2007, Pages 628–641

While reliable estimates of the worldwide prevalence of torture are difficult to obtain, reports from human rights groups such as Amnesty International suggest that instances of torture are reaching near epidemic levels. Torture is a human behavioral phenomenon that is critically understudied, and the effects of torture may trickle down into future generations of the victim.

Books

Caring for Victims of Torture

Jaranson J.M., Popkin M.K., eds. (1998). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press.

Since its beginnings in the 1970s, the field of torture rehabilitation has grown rapidly. A growing awareness about the practice of torture (more than 100 countries today practice government-sanctioned torture) and its effects on victims is leading to an increasing number of dedicated treatment centers. The health care professionals on the staffs of these centers need the best, most up-to-date information and advice they can get. This book delivers it.

Chapter 5: Medical Services

This chapter is a resource for physicians and nurses working with or planning services for torture survivors. Preceding chapters outline the purpose of torture and common torture methods. This chapter reviews the long-term effects of torture and describes roles and responsibilities for physicians, psychiatrists, and nurses who are helping torture survivors reduce trauma symptoms and rebuild their lives in the United States. These roles and responsibilities include education, documentation, assessment, treatment, referral, research, and advocacy.

Torture and its consequences: Current treatment approaches

Basoglu M, ed. (1992). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.

This book reveals in some detail the medical, psychiatric and psychological problems confronting the survivors of torture, and reviews the various and sometimes conflicting treatment approaches available to those involved in their care. Contributions are drawn both from host countries treating refugees who have experienced torture and from countries where treatment and rehabilitation of torture survivors has taken place in a setting of continuing repression and victimization.

Resources

EthnoMed

Information about cultural beliefs, medical issues and other related issues pertinent to the health care of specific immigrant and cultural groups, many of whom are refugees fleeing war-torn parts of the world is available through this Web site. Medical information is available in multiple languages. Local community resources for immigrants and refugees living in the Seattle, Washington area are accessible through this website.

International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims

The International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT) is a private international health organization based in Denmark that supports the prevention of torture and the rehabilitation needs of torture survivors. IRCT published TORTURE journal and offers current news on torture-related issues. Their Web site offers access to a library database that includes information on the subject of torture, including torture prevention and torture rehabilitation.