Zwi Karen, Rungan Santuri, Woolfenden Susan, Williams Katrina, Woodland Lisa
Sydney Children's Hospitals Network and University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
BMJ Open. 2016 Aug 24;6(8):e011387. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2016-011387.
Few studies explore the long-term health and well-being of refugee children. A longitudinal cohort of refugee children was created to determine health and well-being outcomes over time. This article describes the methodology used to conduct this study, including sample characteristics and effectiveness of recruitment and retention strategies.
Newly arrived refugee children settling in a regional part of Australia aged 6 months to 15 years were recruited between 2009 and 2013 and 85% were followed for an average of 31 months.
General practitioners conducted health and pathology examinations shortly after arrival. Additional follow-up assessments were conducted by the research team at an average of 13 months after arrival for the first (year 2) and 31 months for the second (year 3) assessment. Children under 5 years had developmental and children aged 4-17 years had social-emotional screening. Families were assessed for risk and protective factors using a structured interview and the Social Readjustment Ratings Scale. Parent experience of the research was explored.
Eligibility criteria were met by 158 of 228 (69%) newly arrived children, 61 of whom (39%) were enrolled. Retention was 100% (n=61) at year 2 and 85% at year 3. The study sample was younger than and had an over-representation of African refugees as compared to the eligible population. Parents reported that the research was respectful.
This study demonstrates that a longitudinal cohort study in refugee children is feasible and acceptable, and retention rates can be high. The establishment of this cohort provides the opportunity to analyse valuable data about the early settlement experience, risk and protective factors and long-term health and well-being outcomes in refugee children. These are necessary to identify refugee children in need of additional support and to guide future service delivery.
很少有研究探讨难民儿童的长期健康和幸福状况。为此创建了一个难民儿童纵向队列，以确定一段时间内的健康和幸福状况。本文描述了开展这项研究所用的方法，包括样本特征以及招募和保留策略的有效性。
2009年至2013年期间，招募了定居在澳大利亚某地区、年龄在6个月至15岁之间的新抵达难民儿童，85%的儿童接受了平均31个月的随访。
全科医生在儿童抵达后不久进行健康和病理检查。研究团队在抵达后平均13个月（第二年）和31个月（第三年）进行额外的随访评估。5岁以下儿童进行发育筛查，4至17岁儿童进行社会情感筛查。通过结构化访谈和社会再适应评定量表对家庭的风险和保护因素进行评估。探讨了家长对该研究的体验。
228名新抵达儿童中有158名（69%）符合入选标准，其中61名（39%）登记入组。第二年的保留率为100%（n = 61），第三年为85%。与符合条件的人群相比，研究样本年龄更小，非洲难民的比例过高。家长表示该研究很受尊重。
这项研究表明，对难民儿童进行纵向队列研究是可行且可接受的，保留率可能很高。这个队列的建立提供了机会来分析有关难民儿童早期定居经历、风险和保护因素以及长期健康和幸福状况的宝贵数据。这些对于识别需要额外支持的难民儿童以及指导未来的服务提供是必要的。
