Humanitarian Health Care Network: Bringing the Most Vulnerable to Care

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ABSTRACT Thousands of migrants arrive yearly at the southern US border. While most are healthy, some require urgent medical care due to emerging health conditions, exacerbated pre-existing illnesses, injuries acquired during their treacherous journey, or undertreated, undiagnosed, unrecognized chronic diseases. These conditions may receive attention along the border through the assistance of a community-based organization working in isolation, relying on volunteers. More often, medical needs remain unattended until care is obtained at the migrant’s destination. This could include a child with a seizure disorder that is out of medications or a pregnant woman in her third trimester who needs prenatal care to optimize her birth outcome and her child's health. These newly arrived migrants may be among the most vulnerable with cascading health disparities including limited financial resources, Limited English Proficiency (LEP), and limited familiarity with our complex medical system that will make accessing timely medical care extraordinarily difficult. With lives dominated by other pressing needs such as establishing a home, finding a job, or enrolling in school, establishing care is a challenge. Comprehensive data is limited on community health outcomes; however, considerable health inequities are reported anecdotally. In collaboration with public and private partners, we aim to foster a community-engaged research project to develop and coordinate a system that will allow us to identify and connect to care for pregnant women and children with complex medical needs. We believe we can structural changes that will improve health inequities in collaboration with the many partners engaged in receiving arriving migrants.