Mental Health Issues in Immigrant Families

The prevalence of mental health disorders, coupled with a sense of complete absence of belonging due to the barriers of linguistic and ethnic platforms, is high amongst refugees and immigrant families in Canada. The report highlights the salient features regarding the prevalence of mental health issues amongst immigrant families of Canada, followed by a discussion of the possible strategies and the availability of organizational solutions for resolution of the same.

Running head: MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES
MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES
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1MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES
Executive Summary
The emerging population of refugee and migrant families in Canada has posed to be a serious
problem pertaining to the mental health status of the concerned youth and children. The presence
of such shortcomings has considerable implications on the academic performance of immigrant
children and youth, with respect to the early childhood education and care scenario. However,
the implementation of adequate response strategies by the corresponding early childhood leaders
and advocates, along with the additional presence of non-profit organizations, will lead to
considerable provision of aid and assessment to the concerned immigrant youth and children of
Canada.

2MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES
Table of Contents
Introduction..........................................................................................................................3
Discussion............................................................................................................................3
Current Canadian Statistics and Demographics..............................................................3
Mental Health issues........................................................................................................4
Possible Response Strategies...........................................................................................5
Organizations...................................................................................................................5
Conclusion...........................................................................................................................6
References............................................................................................................................7

3MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES
Introduction
The prevalence of mental health disorders, coupled with a sense of complete absence of
belonging due to the barriers of linguistic and ethnic platforms, is high amongst refugees and
immigrant families in Canada (Durbin et al., 2015).
The following paragraphs of the report highlight the salient features regarding the
prevalence of mental health issues amongst immigrant families of Canada, followed by a
discussion of the possible strategies and the availability of organizational solutions for resolution
of the same.
Discussion
The following paragraphs outline the background and solutions pertaining to mental
health issues prevalent amongst immigrant families in Canada.
Current Canadian Statistics and Demographics
There has been a recent surge concerning the population of children prevalent in the
United States and Canada, with at least one child possessing immigrant roots, amongst a total of
four children. Such emerging trends pose significant difficulties in the establishment of policy
frameworks pertaining to early child-care and development, due to the presence of varied
ethnicities and cultures (Yao & Sbihi, 2016). As stated by the census report in Canada during the
year 2016, a total of 3.5% of the Canadian population comprised of immigrant or refugee
families, amounting to a total of almost 1 million. The countries of origin, as prevalent in most of
the emerging immigrant families, were reported to be primarily Europe, followed by Africa and
Asia. The concentration of such refugees and migrants were observed to be highest in the states

4MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES
of Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto, following the settlement of a significant portion in the
Prairies and Atlantic regions. An absence of English speaking individuals, followed by a
presence of over 200 varied ethnical cultures, further present an emerging presence of mental
health issues and difficulties in formulation of solutions (Sanou et al., 2014).
Mental Health issues
Due to the presence of unique cultural diversity and linguistic identities, the children and
youth existing amongst the immigrant families are encountered with considerable shortcomings
which exhibit significant detrimental impact on their mental health, further posing as a difficulty
in overcoming the implementation of principles pertaining to early childhood educations, care
and development (Guruge & Butt, 2015). Upon setting foot in a country vastly different from
their own, refugee and immigrant children and youth are burdened with an immediate
responsibility to adapt to the languages and cultures of their respective surroundings. Children
and adolescents from migrant families are further pressurized by their friends and neighbors to
adopt the native Canadian identity, while they struggle to uphold their own individualistic
indigenous principles. This further results in stress and tensions, severely disrupting sound
mental health and their ongoing performance in the early childhood and care scenarios (Beiser &
Hou, 2016).
Additional issues amongst immigrant children and their families, include racial distortion,
where they encounter discrimination and distrust due to their skin color being associated with a
prevalence of inhabiting antisocial or criminal backgrounds (Vigod et al., 2016).

5MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES
Possible Response Strategies
There is a need for the adoption of salient strategies and modifications in the early
childhood education scenario. Early childhood leaders and advocates should recognize the
presence of differential expectations from children and families of migrants, hence emerging the
need to engage in empathetic conversation with the parents of the concerned children regarding
the difficulties they are facing in their child’s educational and behavioral backgrounds
(Majumder et al., 2015). The concerned school can further establish centers or programs aiming
to encourage immigrant parents and their children to participate in community service activities
or educational workshops, which would further enhance their familiarity regarding the Canadian
culture (Betancourt et al., 2015). The formulation of immigration care or welcome centers
amongst schools would further pose to be a beneficial strategy in early childhood education, with
the help of which, immigrant children and youth can acquire aid and considerable advocacy from
their parents, further helping them to establish healthy adaptive relationships. Further advocacy
programs may also be conducted in the early childhood education premises in order to encourage
awareness and acceptance regarding migrant values and principles (Annan et al., 2017).
Organizations
With respect to the ongoing emergence of refugee and immigrant families in Canada,
there is a need for organizational support concerning the varied mental health issues encountered
by the same, due to the variations in cultural and ethnic principles prevalent. Hence, a number of
non-governmental and non-profit organizations have been formulated, to serve as a voice for the
children and their families, belonging to various refugee and migrant families (Evans & Shields,
2014).

6MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES
The Centre for Immigrant and Community Services, situated in Toronto, Canada, is a key
organization with a rich fifty-year-old history, formulated for providing aid to various refugee
and immigrant families new to the land of Canada. The organization employs a diverse
workforce, hailing from varied cultural backgrounds, and numerous linguistic principles. The
organization presents a vast array of services for the betterment of children and youth belonging
to refugee and immigrant families. These include various academic-oriented programs and
facilities, which will aid in the academic improvement of migrant children. There is also the
provision of enrichment programs concerning leadership and life skills for the holistic
development of the concerned child in early child education, followed by the conductance of
various recreational summer camps for fun and leisure purposes (Ruiz-Casares et al., 2015).
The Mathew House Toronto is an additional non-profit organization dedicated for the
provision of shelter and care towards refugee families and their children, spanning over the state
with four homes. The organization extends their services through the availability of shelter for
homeless migrants, care services for children and their parents, as well as orientation programs to
aid immigrant families to adjust to the new life in Canada (Flynn & Bauder, 2015).
Conclusion
Hence, it can be concluded that the emerging trends of immigrant families in Canada, can
pose to be a serious problem with respect to the various mental health issues encountered by
children in youth in early childcare settings. However, with adequate advocacy and aid, along
with considerable sensitivity, the possibility of a better life for migrant families is not bleak.

7MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES
References
Annan, J., Sim, A., Puffer, E. S., Salhi, C., & Betancourt, T. S. (2017). Improving mental health
outcomes of Burmese migrant and displaced children in Thailand: A community-based
randomized controlled trial of a parenting and family skills intervention. Prevention
Science, 18(7), 793-803.
Beiser, M., & Hou, F. (2016). Mental health effects of premigration trauma and postmigration
discrimination on refugee youth in Canada. The Journal of nervous and mental
disease, 204(6), 464-470.
Durbin, A., Moineddin, R., Lin, E., Steele, L. S., & Glazier, R. H. (2015). Mental health service
use by recent immigrants from different world regions and by non-immigrants in Ontario,
Canada: a cross-sectional study. BMC health services research, 15(1), 336.
Evans, B., & Shields, J. (2014). Nonprofit engagement with provincial policy officials: The case
of NGO policy voice in Canadian immigrant settlement services. Policy and
Society, 33(2), 117-127.
Flynn, E., & Bauder, H. (2015). The private sector, institutions of higher education, and
immigrant settlement in Canada. Journal of International Migration and
Integration, 16(3), 539-556.
Guruge, S., & Butt, H. (2015). A scoping review of mental health issues and concerns among
immigrant and refugee youth in Canada: Looking back, moving forward. Can J Public
Health, 106(2), 72-78.

8MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES IN IMMIGRANT FAMILIES
Majumder, P., O’Reilly, M., Karim, K., & Vostanis, P. (2015). ‘This doctor, I not trust him, I’m
not safe’: The perceptions of mental health and services by unaccompanied refugee
adolescents. International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 61(2), 129-136.
Ruiz-Casares, M., Kolyn, L., Sullivan, R., & Rousseau, C. (2015). Parenting adolescents from
ethno-cultural backgrounds: A scan of community-based programs in Canada for the
promotion of adolescent mental health. Children and Youth Services Review, 53, 10-16.
Sanou, D., O’Reilly, E., Ngnie-Teta, I., Batal, M., Mondain, N., Andrew, C., ... & Bourgeault, I.
L. (2014). Acculturation and nutritional health of immigrants in Canada: a scoping
review. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 16(1), 24-34.
Vigod, S., Sultana, A., Fung, K., Hussain-Shamsy, N., & Dennis, C. L. (2016). A population-
based study of postpartum mental health service use by immigrant women in Ontario,
Canada. The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 61(11), 705-713.
Yao, J., & Sbihi, H. (2016). Prevalence of non-food allergies among non-immigrants, long-time
immigrants and recent immigrants in Canada. Can J Public Health, 107(4-5), 461-466.