An exploration of politicized healthcare access for Syrian and Palestinian refugees in Jordan: a question of equity
International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care
ISSN: 1747-9894
Article publication date: 22 February 2022
Issue publication date: 10 March 2022
Abstract
Purpose
Refugees commonly face inequitable access to health care services in their host country. This study aimed to identify factors influence refugee access to health services and to assess perceptions of barriers to health care for different refugee groups in Jordan.
Design/methodology/approach
In-depth interviews were combined with document analysis and analyzed using thematic and framework methods.
Findings
Findings highlighted inequitable access to health services between different refugee groups. Unlike Palestinian refugees from the West Bank, Palestinian refugees from Gaza faced financial barriers to access health care as a result of citizenship status, which affected their health insurance, referrals for health care and legal right to work. Syrian refugees similarly lacked Jordanian citizenship and health insurance and mainly depended on UNHCR for health services, though some were able to acquire work permits and pay for private care.
Originality/value
This study demonstrates a need for politically and economically appropriate policies to minimize the disparity of health care access among these refugee groups.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Authors are grateful to the University of Leeds Nuffield Centre for International Health and Development staff for their ongoing support and guidance during this project, including Dr Stephen Pearson, Dr Bassey Ebenso, Prof Tim Ensor, Dr Tolib Mirzoev, Dr Rebecca King, Prof Mayeh Omar and Dr Reinhard Huss, as well as to the JHAS staff for their assistance with recruitment and access into Za’atari camp. Most of all, they gratefully thank each Palestinian and Syrian refugee who took their time to take part in this research study.Funding: This study was undertaken as part of Kayla Halsey Master’s of Science in International Health degree program at the University of Leeds, which was funded through a USA federal student loan.Authors’ contribution: KH developed the research question and design, led the research project, collected and analyzed qualitative data, conducted the policy analysis and wrote the first draft of the paper. SH was involved in collecting and transcribing the qualitative data. MN contributed in qualitative data analysis and policy analysis in addition to writing the final draft. GM supported the development of the research design, reporting of results and supervised the overall research project. All authors contributed to revising the final draft, gave final approval of the version to be published and agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work.
Citation
Halsey, K., Alarood, S., Nawaiseh, M. and Mir, G. (2022), "An exploration of politicized healthcare access for Syrian and Palestinian refugees in Jordan: a question of equity", International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, Vol. 18 No. 1, pp. 51-65. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJMHSC-06-2021-0050
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited