Abstract
European Union policy is to restrict the entry into the EU of asylum seekers. This has resulted in the detention of many thousands of asylum seekers including children and adolescents in prison-like environments. The available evidence suggests this practice is associated with high levels of psychological distress, anxiety, affective and posttraumatic stress disorder, and deliberate self-harm. Significant numbers of detained asylum seekers are released and some would benefit from contact with child mental health professionals. It is suggested that in keeping with EU policy aims alternatives to detention should be sought.
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Acknowledgments
Thanks to Harriet Wistrich and Steve Symonds and anonymous reviewers for comments on an earlier draft of this paper.
Conflict of interest statement
The author is a member of Medical Justice, an organisation that facilitates the provision of independent medical and legal advice to asylum seekers detained in immigration removal centres, and seeks to negotiate changes to policy and practice within detention centres.
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Hodes, M. The mental health of detained asylum seeking children. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 19, 621–623 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-010-0093-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-010-0093-9