Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40307844›Full record

ArticleBMC health services research2025

Experiences of healthcare and administrative staff working with asylum seekers in the current polycrisis context: a qualitative study.

Léa Grosjean, Yann Sancosme, Kevin Morisod, Allison François, Rose Caitlin, Anne Jachmann, Véronique S Grazioli, Patrick Bodenmann

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Article in BMC health services research, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Léa GrosjeanDepartment of Vulnerabilities and Social Medicine, Center for Primary Care and Public Health, Chair of Medicine for Vulnerable Populations, University of Lausanne, Unisanté, Rue de la Corniche 10, Lausanne, 1011, Switzerland. lea.grosjean@unil.ch.
Yann SancosmeDepartment of Vulnerabilities and Social Medicine, Center for Primary Care and Public Health, Chair of Medicine for Vulnerable Populations, University of Lausanne, Unisanté, Rue de la Corniche 10, Lausanne, 1011, Switzerland.
Kevin MorisodDepartment of Vulnerabilities and Social Medicine, Center for Primary Care and Public Health, Chair of Medicine for Vulnerable Populations, University of Lausanne, Unisanté, Rue de la Corniche 10, Lausanne, 1011, Switzerland.
Allison FrançoisDepartment of Vulnerabilities and Social Medicine, Center for Primary Care and Public Health, Chair of Medicine for Vulnerable Populations, University of Lausanne, Unisanté, Rue de la Corniche 10, Lausanne, 1011, Switzerland.
Rose CaitlinDepartment of Vulnerabilities and Social Medicine, Center for Primary Care and Public Health, Chair of Medicine for Vulnerable Populations, University of Lausanne, Unisanté, Rue de la Corniche 10, Lausanne, 1011, Switzerland.
Anne JachmannDepartment of Emergency Medicine, Inselspital, Bern University Hospital, University of Bern, 3012, Bern, Switzerland.
Véronique S Grazioli *Department of Vulnerabilities and Social Medicine, Center for Primary Care and Public Health, Chair of Medicine for Vulnerable Populations, University of Lausanne, Unisanté, Rue de la Corniche 10, Lausanne, 1011, Switzerland.
Patrick Bodenmann *Department of Vulnerabilities and Social Medicine, Center for Primary Care and Public Health, Chair of Medicine for Vulnerable Populations, University of Lausanne, Unisanté, Rue de la Corniche 10, Lausanne, 1011, Switzerland.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundHealthcare and administrative staff working with asylum seekers are at risk of burnout, compassion fatigue and vicarious traumatization. Moreover, they face a series of crises, with the refugee crisis in 2015-2016, the Covid-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and climate change, complexifying their daily practice and increasing the number of asylum seekers. Despite this alarming context, scarce research has explored the personal experiences of healthcare and administrative staff working with asylum seekers. In response, this qualitative study aimed to explore their work-related experiences, resources and needs in the current polycrisis context in Switzerland.

methodsParticipants (N = 24) were part of the front-line care team working with asylum seekers in the Canton of Vaud (Switzerland). The sample included nurses, administrative staff, physicians and psychologists. They participated in semi-structured interviews exploring the personal experiences of their work, difficulties and challenges encountered and their resources and needs. Inductive content analysis was used to organize data and identify themes.

resultsMain findings highlighted a significant emotional burden for staff related to their patients' migratory journey and experiences in the asylum system. Next, participants expressed various challenges associated with their work, such as heavy workload, lack of partners in the healthcare network, communication barriers and the polycrisis context. Further, findings documented that participants' strong intrinsic motivation and personal and institutional resources support them in overcoming these difficulties. Finally, participants made some suggestions for the improvement of their working environment, including promotion of exchange between colleagues, collaboration with partners and hiring additional staff.

conclusionsHealthcare and administrative staff working with asylum seekers are exposed to multiple challenges and emotional difficulties linked to their patients' experiences. Findings suggest the need to address the well-being of this population by developing measures to enhance support for them at individual and structural levels, particularly within the current polycrisis context.

Indexed as

COVID-19Health PersonnelRefugeesAdultAttitude of Health PersonnelBurnout, ProfessionalFemaleHumansInterviews as TopicMaleMiddle AgedQualitative ResearchSARS-CoV-2SwitzerlandAdministrative staffAsylum seekersExperiencesHealthcare staffPolycrisisQualitative study

Identifiers

PMID40307844
PMCPMC12042358

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

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.