World Refugee Day is celebrated on 20 June each year, and Refugee Week in Australia runs from 16-22 June 2024.
It’s a time for celebrating the richness and diversity that refugees bring to our region and the positive social, cultural and economic contributions they make to our country. It’s also a time to raise issues that affect this priority population.
Many refugees and people seeking asylum have complex physical and mental health issues resulting from:
- Exposure to infectious diseases such as Tuberculosis (TB)
- Susceptibility to poor nutrition
- Lack of health care
- Chronic illnesses such as diabetes
- Trauma from conflict, torture, displacement and resettlement
- Mental health issues such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression
Coffs Harbour on the Mid North Coast is a major regional settlement location for newly arrived refugees to Australia, with growing numbers in the Ballina, Byron, Tweed and Lismore LGAs.
More than 3,000 refugees call Coffs Harbour and surrounds home. Since 2000, we have welcomed people from different parts of the world, including Myanmar (Burma), Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria and eight different African countries.
Healthy North Coast is inviting general practices in Coffs Harbour to join the Refugee Transition to General Practice program, which is aimed at assisting general practices in accepting and maintaining refugee patients.
If you know a local general practice that might be interested, please let them know! Applications close at 9am on Friday 14 June 2024.
There are also some great resources available at refugeeweek.org.au if you’d like to get involved!