Responsiveness of support systems to address refugee young people’s mental health needs: Stakeholder perspectives from Turkey and the UK

Refugee young people have high rates of unmet mental health needs. Established barriers to accessing mental health care may be contextual to the host country and its support systems. The aim of this study was to establish the perspectives of refugee young people, parents, and service providers on service responses across one middle-income and one high-income country, Turkey and the UK, respectively. In Turkey, eight professionals (social work, psychology, and education), ten parents and ten young people took part. In the UK, stakeholders included four professionals (health, educational psychology, and non-statutory), seven parents and seven young people. Data were analyzed using a codebook thematic approach. Despite structural differences between the two systems, several commonalities were identified in responses. Conceptualization of mental health, stigma, shame, and parents’ language acquisition acted as barriers to help-seeking in both countries, whilst schools were viewed as central to the initiation of interventions. Contextual barriers in Turkey included child marriage and labor, whilst reliance on non-governmental organizations (NGOs) facilitated joint care pathways. In the UK, providers aimed to adapt and extend care pathways through primary health care. Recommendations included designated policy, joint working, schools acting as service hubs, awareness, and training professionals on contextual knowledge.