Covid-19 in France: the mental health of migrants put to the test
In France, migrants are even more isolated than before, this is what reveals a study, one of the few on exiles in this period of health crisis.
And for good reason, often without paper, these people do not appear in any statistics.
REUTERS / Gonzalo Fuentes
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
In France, the health crisis worsens the mental health of migrants.
Two sociologists from the Rennes School of Public Health Studies looked at exiles in precarious situations.
People who already suffered before Covid-19 from mental disorders for 38% of them.
In addition to the traumas linked to uprooting and the hardships they endured during their journey, this crisis complicates their daily lives.
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An even more isolated population than before, this is what this study reveals, one of the few on exiles in this period of crisis.
And for good reason, often without paper, these people do not appear in any statistics.
For Alessia Lefébure, co-author of the study, the crisis has restricted the activities of associations and therefore dried up one of the main sources of material aid, but also of human interactions for migrants.
“
There were health measures which meant that there were far fewer volunteers who could be mobilized.
Certain decisions were taken to comply with health measures, particularly in Calais and for certain associations which could no longer distribute food aid.
They therefore made the interventions much more difficult
.
"
The fear of police checks during confinements has also pushed some migrants to further limit their movements.
Laure Wolmark, psychologist, has been observing the effects for months.
She works for Comede, the Committee for the Health of Exiles: “
I think of patients without resources, very dependent on food aid and who have spoken to me about the feeling of living in an open-air prison.
I think it makes them feel like they have no perspective too.
"
Another conclusion of the study: the means of care are insufficient for a population which often arrives very fragile and whose psychological situation tends to deteriorate in France.
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To listen: Migrants in Europe: the invisible victims of Covid-19
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