Infectious Diseases and Other Health Findings in Refugees Who Arrived Through National Institute for Health, Migration and Poverty (NIHMP)-Verified Humanitarian Corridors in Italy: Changes from 2018 to 2024

TL;DR

The study examines health data of refugees entering Italy through humanitarian corridors from 2018 to 2024, finding significant differences in infectious diseases and vulnerabilities based on nationality and corridor.

Contribution

This is one of the first studies to analyze health and vulnerability data of refugees through NIHMP-verified humanitarian corridors in Italy.

Findings

Infectious conditions affect less than 15% of refugees in most corridors, with only one corridor exceeding 50%.

Statistically significant differences in health outcomes are linked to nationality and corridor.

Vulnerability reports show significant associations with corridor, gender, and nationality among minors.

Abstract

Introduction: Humanitarian corridors were first established in Italy in 2015 as part of the Protected Entry Procedures (PEPs). These corridors provide a safe and legal route to Europe for migrants in need of protection, offering an alternative to perilous and illegal routes. As the first filter at entry with regard to health needs, the National Institute for Health, Migration and Poverty (NIHMP) ensures an overall individual health assessment, the primary aim of which is to identify potential infectious diseases and disorders that may require management and medical inquiry. This study aims to analyze the health data related to the humanitarian corridors that Italy has implemented and in which the NIHMP has taken part between 2018 and 2024. Materials and Methods: Health information and organizational records were gathered for every corridor. The analysis focused on health outcomes and on the sample’s sociodemographic characteristics. If the p-value was less than 0.01 it was considered statistically significant. Cramer’s V was calculated to assess the strength of each statistically significant result. Results: A total of 1250 refugees have been able to enter Italy thanks to the 14 NIHMP-verified humanitarian corridors. In the majority of the corridors, infectious conditions are present in less than 15% of the total number of refugees, and in only one corridor are they higher than 50%. There are statistically significant differences in nationality in the inferential analysis based on all health findings and in corridor and nationality according to the inferential analysis conducted for infectious conditions. The analysis relating to the differences by other health findings show statistically significant results in corridor, number of reports of vulnerability, and nationality. Lastly, considering the analysis done for all refugees < 18 years of age, there were statistically significant results in the number of reports of vulnerability, gender, and nationality, but there were not for any kind of health data. Conclusions: This study is one of the first attempts at reporting and analyzing vulnerable flags and health data concerning refugees who arrived through NIHMP-verified humanitarian corridors. Certain characteristics of our sample have few or no counterparts in the literature due to the limited availability of scientific literature on the subject. Despite this, our findings have statistical significance and scientific value, highlighting the need for further research on this subject.

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