AUSTIN, Texas — The U.S. government must do more to address the needs of Congolese refugee “women at risk” through trauma-related services and social support, according to a report by the Institute on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (IDVSA) at The University of Texas at Austin and the Department of Sociology & Social Work at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University.
The report issued recommendations for the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, which is responsible for resettling 50,000 Congolese refugees in the United States by 2019. The recommendations are based on a study of refugee women from the Democratic Republic of Congo who have resettled in the United States after decades of unrest in their homeland.
“The women who participated in our study experienced multiple traumas and hardship,” said Noël Busch-Armendariz, lead author of the report and director of IDVSA in The University of Texas at Austin School of Social Work. “This study provides empirical evidence to inform the tremendous efforts already underway to meet the needs of Congolese female refugees.”
Although the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program emphasizes economic integration through job placement, the report finds that many refugee women had unmet needs for trauma-related services, social support and longer-time financial support, said IDVSA researcher and project director Karin Wachter. The study was partially funded by a $15,000 grant from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Researchers conducted interviews and focus groups with 57 Congolese refugee women and resettlement service providers in Lexington, Kentucky; San Antonio, Texas; and Salt Lake City, Utah, which have received high numbers of Congolese refugee women during the past decade. (Excerpt) Read more at utexas.edu ...
Ann Corcoran linked to that story in her piece. Good to know that people are becoming aware of the dire situation being imposed on the American health care system and society at large.