Minnesota Refugee Health Provider Guide
This manual is designed to be a reference document for health care providers who perform the Minnesota Initial Refugee Health Assessment exam. Providers can use the manual to find specific guidance on the recommended components of the exam as well as answers to general questions about the delivery of health care to refugees.
Updated 2/2011
- Introduction
Introduction to the refugee health program and this provider guide, including how to use the guide, plus acknowledgements.
- Chapter One:
Refugee Health Program
The history of the MN Refugee Health program, terminology, and descriptions of the refugee health medical exams.
- Chapter Two:
The Minnesota Initial Refugee Health Assessment
The Minnesota initial refugee health assessment is designed to reduce health-related barriers to successful resettlement, while protecting the health of Minnesota residents and the U.S. population.
- Chapter
Three: Immunizations
Every child and adult refugee should be appropriately immunized against vaccine-preventable diseases.
- Chapter Four: Tuberculosis
The incidence of TB in Minnesota is increasing markedly, with a large and increasing percentage of TB cases occurring among foreign-born persons.
- Chapter Five: Hepatitis
B
During 2009, 5 percent of all refugees screened in Minnesota tested positive for Hepatitis B infection.
- Chapter Six: Sexually
Transmitted Diseases
The rate of STDs among refugees arriving to Minnesota is unknown.
- Chapter Seven:
Parasitic Infections
In 2009, 27 percent of refugees screened in Minnesota had at least one intestinal parasite with the highest rates among Southeast Asians and sub-Saharan Africans.
- Chapter Eight:
Malaria
In 2009, 43 cases of malaria were reported to MDH. Forty-one case-patients likely acquired malaria in Africa.
- Chapter Nine: Child
Lead Screening
Refugee children have up to 7 times the risk of lead poisoning compared with the general population of MN children.
- Chapter
Ten: Refugee Mental Health
Although the Minnesota Initial Refugee Health Assessment form does not have a mental health component, it is critical that mental health issues be addressed in the screening process.
- Chapter
Eleven: Working with Medical Interpreters
The need for clarity and understanding is paramount in a clinic or hospital, where life-and-death-decisions hinge on immediate, accurate communications.
- Glossary
Definitions of refugee and refugee health terms.
