| Affiliations: | |
| Project Leader: | Bridget Higgins bridget_higgins@tamu.edu Biomedical Sciences |
| Faculty Mentor: | Dr. Marissa Cisneros, Ph.D. |
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Meeting Times:
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Tuesdays at 9:45am |
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Team Size:
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5
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| Open Spots: | 3 |
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Special Opportunities:
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Ability for co-authorship on publications. Ability to be recipient of grant.
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Team Needs:
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Ability to complete extensive literature reviews that require an ability to synthesize large groups of information as well as identify gaps of knowledge within synthesized findings. Ability to conduct unbiased research along with being able to complete the necessary CITI trainings in order to successfully identify disparities among minority groups. |
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Description:
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Cultural competency in crisis intervention and relief care, specific to the Syrian refugee crisis, is severely lacking. Due to this deficit, significant health disparities have emerged as a result of not only a decreased quality of healthcare but altogether a lack of access to healthcare. Public health, in regards to refugees, poses a burden of disease that is jeopardized by backgrounds of human trafficking, PTSD, political distrust, oppression, and social conflict in addition to an overall distrust for the healthcare system based upon experience and overall disrespect toward cultural and religious beliefs. Healthcare, at its present state, fails to provide providers who are culturally competent at both the macro-level and personal-level with this unique patient population and, as a result, are contributing to decreased quality and access due to failed community outreach initiatives and lack of proper training. The purpose of the research is to develop an understanding of the obstacles Syrian refugees face and how the healthcare system can mitigate them through the development of novel, more efficient practices, and protocols to be enacted by the healthcare system. This dilemma demands research on the question of how has the Syrian refugee’s cultural and personal beliefs affected their access and experience with the healthcare system? Furthermore, what were the significant issues in attempting to access this healthcare? |