A Path to Meeting the Medical and Mental Health Needs of Unaccompanied Children in U.S. Communities
2022 was a record year for the number of unaccompanied migrant children arriving in the U.S. In a report entitled “A Path to Meeting the Medical and Mental Health Needs of Unaccompanied Children in U.S. Communities,” Jonathan Beier and Karla Fredricks examine the special challenges these children face in securing healthcare. Working together with the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Migration Policy Institute sent teams to three U.S. cities: Houston, Los Angeles and New Orleans, to gauge unaccompanied children’s access to medical and mental health services. By interviewing healthcare professionals and the children themselves, they found that there were several major obstacles, including those related to official policies, the complexities of the U.S. health-care system, and individual and community factors. The report highlights promising practices that some regions have adopted to address these barriers. It also presents recommendations for governments, health systems, schools, and communities that, if implemented, the authors believe would substantially strengthen services for unaccompanied children.
Beier, J. & Fredricks, K. (2023, April). A Path to Meeting the Medical and Mental Health Needs of Unaccompanied Children in U.S. Communities. Migration Policy Institute and American Academy of Pediatrics. https://www.migrationpolicy.org/research/medical-mental-health-needs-una...