Full title: Survivors of Daesh genocide: The physical and mental health conditions of resettled Yazidi refugees and implications for best practice
Presenter: Nour Hassan, BHSc (Hons), Research Assistant with Refugee Health YYC Research Program at the University of Calgary's O'Brien Institute for Public Health
Date: Tuesday, November 23rd, 2021
Description:
In 2016, the Government of Canada resettled more than 1,000 Yazidi refugees in various cities across Canada. The resettlement was in response to the 2014 massacre carried out by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, also known as Daesh, to systematically eradicate the Yazidi population in Northern Iraq. The experience of persecution and genocide has left many Yazidis with mental and physical trauma. It is important that service providers working with this population understand the culture and traditions of Yazidis in order to manage their mental health challenges and improve settlement conditions.
The Refugee Health YYC Research Program (RHYYC) at the University of Calgary's O'Brien Institute for Public Health is affiliated with the Mosaic Refugee Health Clinic in Calgary and conducts research on health care issues of refugee patients, including Yazidis. The goal is to improve health outcomes for refugees in Calgary and in Canada. This webinar presents findings from RHYYC on the physical and mental health needs of Yazidis resettled to Calgary following the 2014 genocide. It will highlight implications for best practices when caring for this population and considerations for other highly vulnerable and acutely traumatized refugees such as the newly arriving refugees from Afghanistan.
Presenter biography:
holds a Bachelor of Health Sciences Honours degree from the University of Calgary and is a research assistant at Refugee Health YYC program. For the past two years, her research has focused on the Yazidi refugees resettled to Calgary, a highly traumatized group who survived a recent genocide at the hands of the extremist group known as Daesh. She examined the health impacts of family separations among the Yazidis and for her Honours thesis, she completed a study characterizing their mental and physical health conditions upon arrival to Calgary.
Nour is passionate about supporting and advocating for the integration, rights, and needs of refugees and newcomers and is involved in various projects surrounding the health needs and care barriers of refugees in Calgary and Canada. Nour has delivered a number of presentations on refugee health at multiple conferences including the North American Refugee Health Conference. She is also actively involved with the refugee community in Calgary through volunteer work at the Calgary Bridge Foundation for Youth and RISE (Refugee and Immigrant Self-Empowerment for Health).
