Promising Practices in Accessing Virtual Mental Health: Supporting Refugees during COVID-19

The COVID pandemic can affect immigrant and refugee well-being in multiple ways. For example

1) Increased stress and anxiety because of isolation and economic stress

2) Worries about the illness itself

3) Changes in access to emotional and social support for those already receiving services.

This added stress may motivate people to seek out formal support for their emotional and social well-being. With COVID, many emotional and social supports have been offered on the computer or by phone. The goal of this project is to identify benefits and challenges in on-line or phone based formal (agency or professional) emotional and social well-being support for refugees.

We will develop guidelines for supporting refugee newcomers to access these supports. Although developed for refugees, these recommendations will be helpful for many Canadians who are trying to access on-line formal emotional and social support.

• Are you 18 years of age or older?

• Did you come to Canada as a Resettled Refugee or Refugee Claimant?

• Have you been in Canada for less than 5 years?

• Do you live in one of the following provinces: British Columbia (BC), Alberta (AB), Ontario (ON) or Quebec (QC)?

• Are you

• fluent in one of the following languages Arabic, English, French, Farsi, Tigrinya or Spanish?

• Do you or a family member have personal experience with using formal emotional or social well-being support?

• Do you have access to internet and a computer or a phone?

  If you answered YES to these questions, you may be eligible to participate in a research study.

• All responses will be kept anonymous and confidential.

• Eligible candidates will be invited to participate in a one-hour virtual interview by computer or phone. You will be paid $30 for your time.

• If you are interested in participating, please contact us: E-mail: annaoda@yorku.c