Refugee doctors in London are leading the way in an innovative new scheme to address the mental health difficulties faced by forced migrants. (1) The scheme, launched on Wednesday 17 January, will match refugee doctors as mentors providing emotional, social, practical and language support to mental health service users. The scheme is also intended to provide the doctors with valuable first-hand experience of supporting people with mental health issues.

The scheme will initially match 20 refugee doctors in the London area with forced migrants using mental health services. The doctors are volunteering as mentors as they seek employment or complete the training course to be allowed to practice in the UK. Many forced migrants do not understand the western approach to mental health and can find the terminology and approach of British treatment confusing and inappropriate. The refugee doctors, with their medical training, shared cultural background and experience of living in exile are able to bridge this gap in understanding.
 
The ‘Face to Face’ mentoring project has been set up by the Migrant and Refugee Communities Forum (MRCF) and is funded by Capital Volunteering, a programme which tackles issues of mental health and social exclusion through volunteering. Capital Volunteering is backed by UK volunteering charity CSV and the London Development Centre. Over four-fifths (85%) of participants who experience mental illness independently surveyed on Capital Volunteering projects report positive outcomes, despite the underlying isolation many experience. (2)

David Palmer, Deputy Director, MRCF says: “The mentees will benefit greatly from involvement with the refugee doctors, who can act as role models and give them the confidence to participate fully in mainstream society. Refugee doctors have to wait on average 18 moths for their first training contract and so volunteering as a mentor is an excellent way gain extra skills, knowledge and training to improve future career prospects.”

Behabay ‘Danny’ Koroma, a doctor from Sierra Leone now living in Shepherd Bush and a mentor on the MRCF Face to Face project, says: “The Western approach to mental health tries to help people ‘come back’ from the brink and overcome the obstacles they face.  In most third world countries people steel believe that those who the gods want to destroy first make the person mad. But the different approach in the west can help my mentee and myself forward.”

MRCF is aware of 346 qualified healthcare professionals looking for work in London alone, 149 of whom came to the UK as refugees from countries with human rights violations including Iraq and the Congo. To date, 82 refugee doctors have passed all registration exams to work in the UK but only 19 are in full-time medical employment. During this waiting period, most doctors are seeking training opportunities but many are prevented due to financial hardship and jobcentre regulations.

For further information on the project:  David Palmer, Deputy Director, MRCF 020 8964 4815 david@mrcf.org.uk

The launch is taking place at the MRCF offices, 2 Thorpe Close, W10 5XL at 2-5pm on Wednesday 17 January.

For further press information: Paul Donohoe 020 7812 0037/0779 624 385 pdonohoe@csv.org.uk or Jason Tanner 020 7812 0038 jtanner@csv.org.uk.

Notes for editors

1. Definitions

Refugee: A refugee is someone who has applied for asylum and has by law been granted refugee status. Refugees can legally work.

Asylum seeker: An asylum seeker is someone who is waiting for their application to be recognised as a refugee to be considered by the Government. Asylum seekers are not allowed to work.

Refused asylum seeker: Is someone who has not been granted asylum by the Government. Refused asylum seekers are not allowed to work or claim financial support and are awaiting return to their country. However, many refused asylum seekers are not returned to their country because it is not safe to do so.

Forced migrant: This definition does not distinguish between refugee, asylum and refused asylum seekers.

2. Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College London, 2006.

3. There are more than 26,000 admissions to psychiatric hospitals in London every year with 21.7% admissions due to depression and anxiety, 34.5% due to schizophrenia and related psychoses and 21.9% related to substance misuse.

4. Capital Volunteering projects support people who are isolated due to their illness and whose confidence, self-esteem and social networks are undermined due to their experiences of mental ill-health. Projects also help mental health service users re-gain entry into employment. Capital Volunteering is backed by CSV and the London Development Centre. It received £7.3 million from the Treasury’s Invest to Save budget (ISB). www.capitalvolunteering.org

5. CSV (Community Service Volunteers) creates opportunities for people to take an active part in the life of their communities through volunteering, training and community action. Last year 227,000 people gave 5 million hours of their time as volunteers through CSV. CSV trains 12,705 people of all ages. www.csv.org.uk

6. The London Development Centre is part of the Care Services Improvement Partnership (CSIP) and one of eight regional development centres in England. It aims to support service improvement of care services in London and help ensure better outcomes for children and families, adults and older people, including those with mental health needs, physical disability or learning disabilities and people in the criminal justice system. www.londondevelopmentcentre.org