Program

Nurse Educator M.S.

Year Approved

2017

First Advisor

Bredow, Timothy

Abstract

Background: Historically, the U.S. has been known to lead the world in refugee resettlement. To date, the U.S. remains the top refugee resettlement country. Refugees are mostly people who have been forced to flee their home countries due to war, persecution, and violence. Because of their immigration status, unique backgrounds, religion, culture, values, perceptions, language barrier, perceived discrimination and stigmatizations, mentally ill immigrants especially those from African countries have posed a challenge to healthcare providers in the U.S. Purpose: The purpose of this research is to review and discuss experiences of mentally ill African immigrants living in the United States. This literature review will look into the factors that affect mentally ill African immigrants living in the U.S. The literature review will prove that the issues immigrants face as they settle in the U.S, include; culture shock, refugee status, stigma, culture, religion, beliefs, language barrier, literacy, lack of access to care, underutilization of mental health services, mental illness perceptions, and socio-economic status. The literature review findings will show that regardless of the state into which the immigrants settle, mentally ill African immigrants tend to share the same experiences. The articles and studies reviewed will seek to answer the following questions; why do the immigrants move into the U. S., what is their understanding of mental illness, how do they feel about the way they are treated by the general public, by the healthcare professionals, and by the healthcare system, how do these immigrants find their way into mental health treatment facilities, what are the implications for health care professionals, how does their culture, religion, stigma and perceived discrimination influence seeking mental illness treatment, are there mental health services available to them and are they able to access these services, and what is the demographic profile of these immigrants (sex, age, marital status, income, level, citizen status, criminal records and education level)?

Degree Name

M.S. Nurse Educator

Document Type

Masterʼs thesis

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Nursing Commons

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