[Detecting vulnerability and managing clinical and social outcomes of refugees and asylum seekers: the experience of Cultural Consultation in Bologna.]

Abstract

Purpose: The Cultural Consultation Service of Bologna (SCC-Bo) is a transcultural psychiatric service situated within the International Protection Service of Bologna since January 2019. From its inception, the SCC-Bo has collected qualitative and quantitative epidemiological data that are stored in a database dedicated to documenting the Service activities and enabling research studies.

Methods: The study recruited 211 refugees and asylum seekers referred to the SCC-Bo from January 2019 to June 2023 and assessed them in the following ways: severity of illness at intake as well as clinical outcomes (CGI scale), diagnosis, and pharmacological therapy.

Results: The people referred to the SCC-Bo from January 2019 to June 2023 were 211: 55,9% (n=120) of them complained of new-onset psychological symptoms of moderate severity, while 26,1% (n=55) of them presented with severe symptoms. Mood disorders were most commonly diagnosed, with psychosis (20,8%, n=44) and PTSD (20,8%, n=44) also occurring frequently. The clinical outcomes improved in most of the refugees or asylum seekers followed by the SCC-Bo.

Discussion: The SCC-Bo is implemented in a unique social milieu such as International Protection Service of Bologna, dedicated to the acceptance of people refugees and asylum seekers. The main goal of the SCC-Bo is to reduce barriers of care related to this peculiar social group providing psychiatric and psychological care as well as a liaison service to local health resources. The findings of this study support the rationale that this peculiar social group may suffer of psychiatric major disorders and may lack of specific clinical support.

Conclusions: The SCC-Bo could be considered a model of psychiatric and psychological care appropriate to the context of the Italian reception of refugees. The SCC-Bo integrates scientific findings of transcultural psychiatric research into the psychological and psychiatric clinical approach towards refugees and asylum seekers.