Migrants in France : a state of health worrying

Francois Mori/AP/SIPA

Published the 05.09.2017 at 18h12

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migrantprécaritésanté mentaleBEH

Contrary to conventional wisdom, migrants do not reduce with them infectious diseases. Most of them are indeed a health problem. But respiratory diseases, metabolic or digestive clearly dominate the table.

In the last issue of the Bulletin Epidemiological Weekly (BEH), public Health France puts the church in the middle of the village, and book a specific assessment of the health status of migrants, their arrival in the country. It contradicts many prejudices on these populations to be precarious.

Journey of migration implies that migrants do not settle down in France in a state of optimal health. Three-quarters of them have suffered from a condition in the past six months. One in six even complain of at least one chronic condition.

Of rare infectious diseases

These testimonies were obtained during the evacuations of 16 makeshift camps in the paris region, which resulted in the displacement of 5,000 people, mostly from Sudan, Afghanistan and Eritrea. Among the 700 migrants surveyed on this occasion, the disorders most often reported are fatigue and injury dental.

“While the conditions of life in the countryside could let it be afraid, no event of outbreak of an infectious disease, enteric not occurred “, in contrast to the authors of this article. They welcome the effectiveness of the interventions of the State and local associations, which have opened access to safe drinking water as well as showers.

In fact, the gale is still marginal and not widespread in the camps of Calais (Pas-de-Calais) and Grande-Synthe, Pas-de-Calais). In these two areas, less than 0.1 % of tb cases have been reported. To reassure the most worried.