Sustainability of REFUGIUM Programme in Refugee Camps

Abstract

Background: An increasing number of refugees came to Germany in the year 2015. With over a million refugees in the country, the temporary accommodation camps became overcrowded and refugees exposed to massive health challenges. During this period, REFUGIUM health promotion programme was developed to promote refugees health in accommodation camps. Using a peer to peer approach, REFUGIUM offers health workshops to refugees in different languages such as Arabic, Dari/Farsi, Bulgarian, English among others. Objectives of the Study: This research aims to find out how to make the REFUGIUM programme sustainable in refugee camps as well as how to make a sustainability recommendation plan that is not only beneficial to the REFUGIUM programme, but also to other health promotion programmes. Research Methodology: Data was collected within a period of 3 months. The indicators used to explain the concept sustainability were: health workshops, women outreach, collaboration between stakeholders and required resources for the programme to achieve its goals. 12 qualitative interviews, 3 focus groups and observation were conducted with the Local Health Authorities, Social Management and REFUGIUM Team Members. Results: 27% of all the participants were male and 73% female. The gender distribution in the case the Social Management was unequal with 99% being female and only 1% male, showing that there are more female than male social workers in Hamburg refugee accommodation camps. A total number of 53 codes were formed in all the cases, and from these, 6 themes were formulated. The results showed that women-only workshops and related topics such as pregnancy is an effective strategy of reaching refugee women. For an effective collaboration of REFUGIUM Team Members and the stakeholders, a Top-Down Approach is required. Lastly, there is a pressing need for the programmes publicity through networking and advertisements; and a high need for financial resources among others. Outlook: The multiple case study potrayed the importance of using peer to peer approach to overcome cultural barriers in offering health promotion and other relevant services to the hard-to-reach vulnerable communities. This research is significant for organizations and institutions working with migrants especially the refugees. The sustainability plan developed in this research study can be implemented in any health, social or economic programmes.