SynthesisBMC international health and human rights2019
A model explaining refugee experiences of the Australian healthcare system: a systematic review of refugee perceptions.
Synthesis in BMC international health and human rights, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 39 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
39 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 98 citations in OpenAlex.
- A critical interpretive synthesis of migrants' experiences of the Australian health system.International journal for equity in health · 2023Pooled it
- Cultural adaptations of obesity-related behavioral prevention interventions in early childhood: A systematic review.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2022Pooled it
- Barriers and facilitators to dental care access among asylum seekers and refugees in highly developed countries: a systematic review.BMC oral health · 2020Pooled it
- Profiles of clinical service use for suicide ideation and suicide attempts across Australian cultural and linguistic groups: a latent class analysis using data from the National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing (2020-2022).Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2026Article
- Country-level determinants of healthcare access for refugee populations in a host country: a comparative case study.International journal for equity in health · 2026Article
- What makes a good general practitioner consultation for refugees: perspectives of Africans from refugee backgrounds in Australia.BMC primary care · 2026Article
- Health of South Asian migrants and refugees in Australia: an evidence gap map.BMJ global health · 2026Review
- Wellbeing in the First 1000 Days for Syrian and Afghan refugee women living in Australia: a qualitative study.BMC women's health · 2025Article
- Article
- Experiences of Healthcare Engagement from Somali Migrants Living with Type 2 Diabetes and Cardiovascular Diseases in Victoria, Australia.Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities · 2025Article
- "The Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Community Is Not Just Minoritised But Ignored": Engaging Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Communities in Australia With Blood-Borne Viruses and Sexually Transmissible Infections Healthcare.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2025Article
- Developing a dementia care and support needs framework for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse populations: A whole-of-community co-design approach.Australasian journal on ageing · 2025Article
- How young migrants perceive school health education in Sweden.Health education research · 2025Article
- Design of an Early Year's Intervention With and for the Community: A Needs Assessment and Gap Analysis.Health promotion journal of Australia : official journal of Australian Association of Health Promotion Professionals · 2025Article
- Impacts of COVID-19 on African Migrants' Wellbeing, and Their Coping Strategies in Urban and Regional New South Wales, Australia: a Qualitative Study.Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities · 2024Article
- Health of refugees settled in Australia over time and generations: a transformative mixed methods study protocol.BMJ open · 2024Article
- A qualitative study of negative sociocultural experiences of accessing primary health care services among Africans from refugee backgrounds in Australia: implications for organisational health literacy.BMC primary care · 2024Article
- Family member and service provider experiences and perspectives of a digital surveillance and service navigation approach in multicultural context: a qualitative study in identifying the barriers and enablers to Watch Me Grow-Electronic (WMG-E) program with a culturally diverse community.BMC health services research · 2024Article
- Developing a Collaborative Approach to Support Access and Acceptability of Mental Health Care for Refugee Youth: An Exploratory Case Study with Young Afghan Refugees.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Article
- Exploring Trauma- and Violence-Informed Pregnancy Care for Karen Women of Refugee Background: A Community-Based Participatory Study.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundRefugees have significant unmet health needs. Delivering services to refugees continues to be problematic in the Australian healthcare system. A systematic review and thematic synthesis of the literature exploring refugee perceptions of the Australian healthcare system was performed.
methodsTitles and abstracts of 1610 articles published between 2006 and 2019 were screened, and 147 articles were read in full text. Depending on the type of study, articles were appraised using the Modified Critical Appraisal Tool (developed by authors), the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool, or the JBI Appraisal Checklist for Systematic Reviews. Using QSR NVivo 11, articles were coded into descriptive themes and synthesised into analytical themes. An explanatory model was used to synthesise these findings. Confidence in the review findings were assessed with GRADE-CERQual approach.
resultsThe final synthesis included 35 articles consisting of one systematic review, 7 mixed methods studies, and 27 qualitative studies. Only one study was from a regional or rural area. A model incorporating aspects of engagement, access, trust, and privacy can be used to explain the experiences of refugees in using the Australian healthcare system. Refugees struggled to engage with health services due to their unfamiliarity with the health system. Information sharing is needed but this is not always delivered effectively, resulting in disempowerment and loss of autonomy. In response, refugees resorted to familiar means, such as family members and their pre-existing cultural knowledge. At times, this perpetuated their unfamiliarity with the broader health system. Access barriers were also encountered. Trust and privacy are pervasive issues that influenced access and engagement.
conclusionsRefugees face significant barriers in accessing and engaging with healthcare services and often resorted to familiar means to overcome what is unfamiliar. This has implications across all areas of service provision. Health administrators and educators need to consider improving the cultural competency of staff and students. Policymakers need to consider engaging communities and upscale the availability and accessibility of professional language and cultural supports. Research is needed on how these measures can be effectively delivered. There is limited research in remote areas and further evidence is needed in these settings.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.