Training and education

The collaboration between the center and the WHO Regional Office for Europe also focuses on capacity building. Specifically, supporting WHO in building the capacity of healthcare providers and other stakeholder on refugee and migrant health.

The purpose of these activities will be to build capacity to promote refugee and migrant health, taking pedagogical methods and WHO policies into account.

Training course on health in immigration detention and the use of alternatives to detention

The right to health must be protected for all, regardless of status. A report recently published by WHO/Europe, in collaboration with Uppsala University, finds that immigration detention can have a severe impact on migrants' health, especially mental health, during and after release from detention. Over the last few years, immigration detention has increasingly been used as a tool to manage migration flows in the WHO European Region.

To address the severe health impacts of immigration detention, WHO/Europe, together with its Collaborating Centre on Migration and Health Data and Evidence at Uppsala University, held a 2-day in-person training course in May at Uppsala University.

The aim of the training course was to:

• present evidence on the health status of refugees and migrants in immigration detention within the Region and immigration detention’s severe health impact;
• discuss successful approaches in mitigating poor health in immigration detention; and
• discuss the potential and best practices of alternatives to detention.

The course was attended by representatives from selected countries in the WHO European region and other partners.

Capacity-building and human resources for refugee and migrant health

Universities have a pivotal role in building competence for refugee and migrant health. The reportage showcases the work of the University of Uppsala that provides both education and training on migrant-sensitive health care, as well as research and technical guidance as the WHO Collaborating Centre on Migration and Health Data and Evidence.

See the reportage

Workshop in Portugal, November 2023

To address the severe health impacts of immigration detention, WHO/Europe – in collaboration with the International Detention Coalition (IDC) and the Collaborating Centre on Migration and Health Data and Evidence at Uppsala University, Sweden – a workshop on immigration detention: addressing health challenges and exploring alternatives to detention was organised in November 2023 in Lisabon, Portugal.

Read more about the workshop