Long-term health issues of young unaccompanied migrants

The number of young migrants travelling alone is increasing globally and more needs to be done to protect them from the devastating long-term health impacts they could face, a new UCL-led study has found. The findings, published in  The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health , highlight the shortand long-term health challenges of unaccompanied minors (UAMs - those aged under 18 who are travelling without a parent or legal guardian), who often go under the radar. Researchers from UCL's Institute for Global Health and Institute of Health Informatics collaborated with the UN Migration Agency, Médecins Sans Frontières, Harvard University, Lancaster University and the charity CAFEMIN in Mexico to produce the report. They combined existing literature with data on asylum applications from online migration portals to build a narrative review of the health issues specifically facing UAMs. They examined six main migration corridors: the Central Mediterranean route from North Africa to Italy through Libya; the Balkan route from Afghanistan, Syria and Iran to Serbia and Greece through Turkey; Central America to the United States through Mexico; the Horn of Africa; Southeast Asia; and Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Myanmar to Australia through Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia. The researchers highlight the tension between border enforcement, which criminalises irregular migration, and prioritising a child rights-based assessment of health needs. They found that UAMs, lacking an element of protection their family might normally offer, are particularly vulnerable to mental health issues such as depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).