Skip to main content
Country Code
LK

Mental health of migrants in low-skilled work and the families they leave behind

Migration is rapidly reshaping the world. Low-skilled labour migration, in particular, is driven by disparities in income, wealth, and work opportunities. Labour migrants are increasingly flowing among low-income and middle-income nations in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.1 Migrant workers and the family members they leave behind number about 193 million,1 of whom 52–100 million people are domestic workers in low-skilled, so-called difficult, degrading, and dangerous jobs.

Multi-Drug Resistant Tuberculosis in a foreign resident visa holder and implications of a growing inbound migrant flow to Sri Lanka

Abstract We present a case of an international labour migrant worker from India who acquired multiple-drug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) as a result of poor treatment compliance throughout his work and travel history. The travel to Sri Lanka was made under the resident visa scheme. Currently there are no mandatory health assessment requirements for inbound migrants such as resident visa holders to Sri Lanka. The diagnosis of MDR-TB was made at a district level chest clinic and the National Tuberculosis Program (NTP).

“Don’t forget the migrants”: Exploring preparedness and response strategies to combat the potential spread of MERS-CoV virus through migrant workers in Sri Lanka

Abstract: From September 2012 to July 2013, 81 laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), including 45 deaths (a case fatality ratio of 55%) have been reported from eight countries. Human-to-human transmission is now confirmed showing potential for another pandemic of zoonotic disease, with an extremely high mortality rate. Effective surveillance strategies are required in countries with a high influx of migrants from the Middle East to mitigate the probable importation of MERS-CoV.

High attack rate for malaria through irregular migration routes to a country on verge of elimination

Abstract Irregular migration in the form of human smuggling and human trafficking is recognized as a global public health issue. Thirty-two cases of Plasmodium falciparum were detected in 534 irregular migrants returning to Sri Lanka via failed human smuggling routes from West Africa in 2012, contributing to the largest burden of imported cases in Sri Lanka as it entered elimination phase. Beyond the criminality and human rights abuse, irregular migration plays an important, but often forgotten, pathway for malaria re-introduction.

Is Sri Lanka prepared for yellow fever outbreaks? A case study

From Dec 5, 2015 to Oct 13, 2016, 4306 suspected cases of yellow fever were reported in Angola, with 369 deaths and an alarming case fatality ratio of 8·8%. Three countries: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, and China, have reported imported cases from Angola. This is the first time yellow fever has been reported in Asia. Of the ten laboratory-confirmed yellow fever cases reported in China, six people reside in Fujian Province, an area where dengue transmission has occurred, raising concerns of autochthonous transmission.

Health work for shared societies. In: Public Policies in Shared Societies

Shared societies are generally defined as those in which multi-ethnic and multi-cultural communities co-exist. A more dynamic definition articulated by Coexistence International expresses shared societies as those in which ‘diversity is embraced’ and ‘interdependence between different groups is recognized’, where the ‘use of weapons to address conflicts is increasingly obsolete’ (HSSPM, 2011). There are many conceptual dimensions of co-existence, and unpacking these are beyond the scope of this chapter.

Irregular migration as a potential source of malaria reintroduction in Sri Lanka and use of malaria rapid diagnostic tests at point-of-entry screening

Background. We describe an irregular migrant who returned to Sri Lanka after a failed people smuggling operation from West  Africa. Results. On-arrival screening by Anti-Malaria Campaign (AMC) officers using a rapid diagnostic test (RDT) (CareStart  Malaria HRP2/PLDH) indicated a negative result. On day 3 after arrival, he presented with fever and chills but was managed as dengue (which is hyperendemic in Sri Lanka). Only on day 7, diagnosis of Plasmodium falciparum malaria was made by microcopy and CareStart RDT.

Analysis of the domestic legal framework in relation to the right to health for internally displaced persons in Sri Lanka

This document examined Sri Lanka’s current legal framework to examine the extent to which the ‘right to health’ is stipulated specifically for those conflict affected internally displaced persons (IDPs) living within IDP camp settings. Understanding the domestic legal frameworks pertaining to the right to health may be useful for those professionals working at the nexus of legal medicine and human rights in Sri Lanka and advancing gaps in knowledge in this area.

Malaria burden in irregular migrants returning to Sri Lanka from human smuggling operations in West Africa and implications for a country reaching malaria elimination

Background: The number of malaria cases among irregular migrants returning to Sri Lanka has not been investigated.
Methods: In the first 6 months of 2012 we screened 287 irregular migrants returning from seven West African nations to Sri Lanka for malaria to ascertain the risk of infection during migration.

Can migration health assessments become a mechanism for global public health good?

Abstract: Migrant health assessments (HAs) consist of a medical examination to assess a migrant’s health status and to provide medical clearance for work or residency based on conditions defined by the destination country and/or employer. We argue that better linkages between health systems and migrant HA processors at the country level are needed to shift these from being limited as an instrument of determining non-admissibility for purposes of visa issuance, to a process that may enhance public health.