Migration and health. A study of Latin American refugees, their exile in Sweden and repatriation.

OBJECTIVE

To analyse and elucidate the migration process in order to identify psycho-social themes which might act as stressors with influence on health.

DESIGN

Qualitative in-depth interviews with eleven strategically selected Latin American refugees.

SETTING

Latin American refugees living in Lund, a university town, and those who were repatriated to Santiago, Chile.

PARTICIPANTS

11 Latin Americans of whom 4 were repatriated to Chile.

RESULTS

The migration process was divided into four courses of events: cultural background and everyday life; organized violence; the exile; the repatriation. "Themes" such as cultural and working identity and high control were extracted from the dialogues as central buffering factors against microbiological or physicochemical disease agents harboured by the individual.

CONCLUSIONS

During the exile the cultural barrier, social degradation, guilt, social passivity, and ideological alienation cause a changed identity and low control which increase the vulnerability to psychological distress and physical disease.