“Over-Foreignization” or “Unused Potential”? A Critical Review of Migrant Health in Germany and Responses Toward Unauthorized Migration
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2012
Keywords
Germany, Immigration, Migration, Unauthorized migration, Illegal migration, Cultural competence, Health disparities, Review
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.05.024
Abstract
Persons of migrant background, a highly heterogeneous group, now comprise one-fifth of the total population in Germany. However, delayed and conflicted responses to social inclusion have resulted in clear deficits in the health care system, with few serious attempts to assess migrants’ profiles and needs. This article provides a critical review based on meta-analysis of literature indexed in MEDLINE, a qualitative review of German medical and nursing curricula, and original ethnographic data. It examines discourses and practices embedded within larger national debates on migrant integration and their specific manifestations in the health sector in order to explain the current situation of unauthorized migrants. The historical arc of the last fifty years can be viewed as a progression of key themes based on interrelated concepts of deservingness and selective investment. Relative deservingness is evident in differential social positioning and access to resources, resulting in selective investment and decades of continued social inequality.
Was this content written or created while at USF?
Yes
Citation / Publisher Attribution
Social Science & Medicine, v. 74, issue 6, p. 830-838
Scholar Commons Citation
Castaneda, Heide, "“Over-Foreignization” or “Unused Potential”? A Critical Review of Migrant Health in Germany and Responses Toward Unauthorized Migration" (2012). Anthropology Faculty Publications. 121.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/ant_facpub/121
