tiffanylee

Ms Tiffany Lee

Communication Specialist / MSc student of Public Health
Institution: Lund University
Current Institution Location: Sweden

Email: TiffanyLLee@gmail.com

Migration Health Research Area/Expertise
I am currently an MSc student in Public Health at Lund University and will embark on my master thesis in January of 2019. To date, my knowledge in the domain of migration health is limited, so I write this short essay to explain the origins of my interest and intentions within the area of migration and health.

Having lived in Sweden since 2014, I have experienced the country’s high influx of refugees from mostly Middle Eastern countries. The Swedish Migration Agency granted residency to 35,000 ensamkommande barn (unaccompanied minors) in 2015, 6,853 in 2016 and 5,429 in 2017 (1). The urgent area to address then becomes integration into Swedish society and tackling mental health issues resulting from the trauma of isolation and family separation, fleeing conflict or war, and assimilating into an individualistic society. The challenge for Sweden still remains as the country must somehow satisfy the housing, schooling and healthcare demands of these immigrants, on top of their own people. Even if a country wishes to keep people out under its assertion of economic welfare, it is worth understanding if denying that individual (or people) refuge and health care is a violation of human rights.

My desire is to write a thesis that will contribute to the existing knowledge of migration health. While I hardly possess enough knowledge on research within this realm, I have a broad interest in studying the determinants and epidemiology of sexual and reproductive health and rights to better understand its impacts on adolescent health and at-risk population outcomes, including that of adolescent boys. I’m also deeply interested in the impact of gender and migration and those of key populations that migrate because of discrimination (such as men who have sex with men and sex workers).

To date, my university background lies within Public Health (MSc.) and Communication (B.A.), both of which I believe deepen and redefine each other. Altogether, my interest in understanding migrant health issues is to someday aid in the development of policy measures on migration which prevent human rights violations, reduce poor health outcomes and ensure greater economic stability for the country accepting the migrants. With the data provided by MHADRI, I intend to work on an empirical report (my MSc. thesis in Public Health) that is relevant and valuable to a domain in your organization on the topic of migration and sexual and reproductive health and rights.

1. Swedish Institute (SI). Sweden & Migration. Available from: https://sweden.se/migration/#1940 [Accessed 7 November 2018].