The experiences of asylum seekers in the United Kingdom asylum system and the impacts on their health and wellbeing: A scoping review.

Abstract

Background: International law, established following World War II, grants individuals the right to seek asylum. This led to the concept of asylum integration, which enables asylum seekers to become part of the host country, either as a group or as an individual. Based on this study, this study sought to examine the barriers to asylum seekers' community integration in the United Kingdom and its effect on their quality of life and living standards which ultimately affects their health and wellbeing.

Methods: The study adopted a scoping review of existing literature thus only secondary data were used. Databases used included PubMed, JSTOR, Scopus, ResearchGate, Web of Science and Google Scholar. Ten articles were included. The studies identified were analysed using thematic analysis.

Results: The study revealed that the barriers to integration faced by asylum seekers in the United Kingdom were system challenges, communication challenges and financial challenges and these factors play a great role in impacting on their health and wellbeing. The barriers included a lack of political will, a lack of policies and inadequate housing conditions, language differences and the lack of funding. The study also revealed that the identified barriers affected the quality of life and living standard of asylum seekers in the United Kingdom. The study found that there is physical, psychological and socials effect. It included physical illness, deportation, anxiety and stress, stigmatisation, discrimination, poor immigration experiences and ineffective support for mental and health needs.

Conclusion:  The study found that there are barriers in the UK asylum system that inhibits the smooth integration of asylum seekers and therefore, recommends that the United Kingdom Home Office work with international agencies like the European Union and United Nations to give financial support. This will help integrate more asylum seekers into the United Kingdom system thus reducing the long waiting months which cause anxiety. It is deemed that a comprehensive understanding of these challenges is paramount in shaping policy that could affect the quality of providing an equitable healthcare service.