Empowering Minds Podcast: Migrants, Refugees & Mental Health | Episode 8
Migrants, Refugees & Mental Health
“…there is nobody. I am alone in this country. I don’t have any relatives. I don’t have any friends. I am alone. During the night I maybe sleep three to four hours. I am in bed, but my mind is not in bed. My mind is in Afghanistan.” – France: Afghan Evacuees Need Mental Health Support (research by Human Rights Watch).
On the 10th of October 2022, to mark the 30th World Mental Health Day, an event titled ‘World Mental Health Day: Migrants, Refugees and Mental Health’ was held at the European Parliament. Organised by Mental Health Europe (MHE) and co-hosted by MEP Estrella Durá Ferrandis (S&D) and MEP Tilly Metz (Greens/EFA), the event brought together key actors to discuss the importance of good mental health and how best to provide adequate mental health support in the context of increased migration across Europe.
For this edition of the Podcast, Jr. Communication Officer Margi Marchetti summarised the main points of discussions raised by the experts, such as the need for stronger, more inclusive and accessible mental health promotion, prevention, and services for refugees and migrants in Europe and beyond.
The following spoke at the event on 10 October:
- Stella Kyriakides, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety
- MEP Tilly Metz (Greens/EFA, Luxembourg) – EP Coalition for Mental Health and Wellbeing
- MEP Estrella Durà Ferrandis (S&D, Spain) – EP Coalition for Mental Health and Wellbeing
- Ronan Mangan, Red Cross EU Office – Head of Unit for Social Inclusion
- Laetitia Van der Vennet, Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM) – Advocacy Officer
- Frohar Poya, European Network of Migrant Women – Project Officer
- Jonas Bull, Human Rights Watch – Assistant Researcher, Disability Rights Division
- Verena Knaus, UNICEF – Global Lead on Migation and Displacement
This Podcast episode also brings the voices of Ahmad (Syrian) and Tetiana (Ukrainian): two displaced persons who share their migration stories.
Migrants, Refugees & Mental Health
Read the full transcription here.
About Empowering Minds Podcast
Empowering Minds is a podcast by Mental Health Europe featuring conversations with mental health experts, psychologists and psychiatrists, practitioners and people with lived experience. Mental health is approached from an intersectional perspective, addressing the stigma around this topic and empowering the listeners on their mental health journey.
If you missed the episodes, visit our Anchor page where you will find all the platforms where the podcast is available. You can always listen to Empowering Minds on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. You can also find all the episodes on our website.
