The Right to Health for Forced Migrants

2021 ◽  
pp. 30-34
Author(s):  
Liesbeth Schockaert
2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 134-140
Author(s):  
Gabriela Belova ◽  
Stanislav Pavlov

AbstractThe last decades present a significant development of the economic, social and cultural rights and specifically, the right to health. Until 2000, the right to health has not been interpreted officially. By providing international standards, General Comment No.14 on the right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health has led to wider agreement that the right to health includes the social determinants of health such as access to various conditions, services, goods or facilities that are crucial for its implementation. The Reports of the Special Rapporteur on the right to health within the UN human rights system have contributed to the process of gaining the greater clarity about the right to health. It is obvious that achieving the highest attainable level of health depends on the principle of progressive implementation and the availability of the necessary health resources. The possibility individual complaints to be considered by the Committee on Economic Social and Cultural Rights was introduced with the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, entered into force in 2013.


Author(s):  
Gillian MacNaughton ◽  
Mariah McGill

For over two decades, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has taken a leading role in promoting human rights globally by building the capacity of people to claim their rights and governments to fulfill their obligations. This chapter examines the extent to which the right to health has evolved in the work of the OHCHR since 1994, drawing on archival records of OHCHR publications and initiatives, as well as interviews with OHCHR staff and external experts on the right to health. Analyzing this history, the chapter then points to factors that have facilitated or inhibited the mainstreaming of the right to health within the OHCHR, including (1) an increasing acceptance of economic and social rights as real human rights, (2) right-to-health champions among the leadership, (3) limited capacity and resources, and (4) challenges in moving beyond conceptualization to implementation of the right to health.


Author(s):  
Lawrence O. Gostin ◽  
Benjamin Mason Meier

This chapter introduces the foundational importance of human rights for global health, providing a theoretical basis for the edited volume by laying out the role of human rights under international law as a normative basis for public health. By addressing public health harms as human rights violations, international law has offered global standards by which to frame government responsibilities and evaluate health practices, providing legal accountability in global health policy. The authors trace the historical foundations for understanding the development of human rights and the role of human rights in protecting and promoting health since the end of World War II and the birth of the United Nations. Examining the development of human rights under international law, the authors introduce the right to health as an encompassing right to health care and underlying determinants of health, exploring this right alongside other “health-related human rights.”


2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Magnusson ◽  
I-Z Jama

Abstract The Right to health framework supports available, accessible and acceptable health care of high quality for all (AAAQ). Health of migrants often worsen in the new country. AAAQ may be hindered by poverty, discrimination, health cares' shortcomings and misunderstandings, respectively. Advocating for marginalised groups' Right to health include action. Interventions based on shared influence, participation and control need to be launched. Cultural mediators (CM), i.e. persons that are knowledgeable in both cultures and with networks in migrant groups help overcome lingual problems, lack of trust and uneven power relations. This resource needs to be further examined. How can a CM strengthen AAAQ in a public health setting? Women with Somalian origin living in an underserved neighborhood in Sweden contacted the Public Health Unit of a local hospital, asking for support for a health focused group-activity. Weight loss after delivery was a primary concern. Women gathered monthly 2018-19. The objective was to support healthy life style habits drawing on issues raised by the women. The intervention was conducted by group talks, led by the CM and a public health planner. Methods were based on Social Cognitive Theory focusing on self-efficacy. The CM recruited women, helped them to find the venue, encouraged them to trust the public health planner and broadened perspectives to include female genital mutilation, children's food, how to seek care and workforce issues. Trust developed over time. 70 women participated. Reported gains were raised awareness of ones' rights, increased self-efficacy in relation to food, physical activity and how to support children to a healthy life style. Support for a healthy lifestyle was made more available, accessible and acceptable by the cooperation with the CM, as was the quality of the support. A CM bridges distances regarding spoken language, trust and cultural understanding. S/he puts forward perspectives and needs from the group in question Key messages The Right to health framework highlights areas that need to be in focus when advocating for health equity. Health care workers in settings with many migrants should strive to include cultural mediators in planning, execution and evaluation of interventions.


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