Jul 1, 2014
The Refugee Women's Health Center, part of Maricopa Integrated Health System, is leading the nation in providing quality healthcare to refugee women.
On June 19, the Director of the Refugee Women’s Health Clinic, Dr. Crista Johnson-Agbakwu, gave the keynote address at the 2014 North American Refugee Healthcare Conference (NARHC) in Rochester, NY.
After her keynote, the Director of the Division of Global Migration and Quarantine at the CDC said the work of Dr. Johnson-Agbakwu at MIHS is helping to guide future directions that even the CDC might take to address issues such as sexual and gender-based violence. Representatives from the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), as well as the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), echoed similar sentiments throughout the conference.
During a radio interview in New York on World Refugee Day, June 20, Dr. Johnson-Agbakwu explained that after experiencing horrific trauma, refugee women come to the U.S. with significant vulnerabilities. “The process of acculturation and re-establishing one's life in the United States is one of their biggest challenges,” she says. Healthcare providers need sensitivity to meet the women where they are and build trust over time.