Access to health services in Jordan for refugees from Syria
Citation: El Arab R, Sagbakken M. Healthcare services for Syrian refugees in Jordan: a systematic review. European Journal of Public Health. 2018;28(6):1079–87.
Language: Abstract and full text available in EN.
Free to view: Yes.
Funding sources: Nothing noted.
What is this? In this systematic review, the authors searched for publications about the healthcare needs and access to healthcare services among refugees from Syria in Jordan. They restricted their searches to documents published in English after 2011. They included 9 studies.
What was found: While overall access to healthcare is good for most registered Syrian refugees, some groups faced financial and structural challenges, such as a lack of documentation, the inability to pay for out-of-pocket expenses, and discontinuity of care. Poor health literacy, limited awareness of available health services, and fear of stigmatisation were additional challenges for access to healthcare.
Implications: The authors of the review stated that because Jordan’s health system was already overstretched, there is collective international responsibility for a financial commitment to meet the healthcare needs of both refugee and host populations. Increased flexibility with documentation requirements could improve access to healthcare. Additionally, the lack of knowledge among refugees regarding available healthcare services needs to be addressed.
Other considerations: The authors of the review did not discuss their findings in the context of issues relating to health equity.
This summary was prepared by Riwa Deghaim, checked by Grace Meng, and finalized by William Summerskill.