Improving the Health and Well-being of Afghan Refugee and Immigrant community
Call to Action: Stand with Afghan Refugees Amid Urgent Funding Cuts
The humanitarian crisis faced by Afghan refugees in the United States demands our immediate and unwavering response. Recent significant federal funding cuts have placed tens of thousands of Afghan refugees at profound risk, severely disrupting their access to critical services, including housing, healthcare, mental health, legal assistance, and essential basic needs. Now more than ever, urgent action and collective support from state and county governments, foundations, philanthropists, and community organizations are crucially needed.
In 2021, over 80,000 Afghans sought refuge in the United States, fleeing persecution, violence, and instability following the Taliban's takeover. Welcomed with promises of sanctuary and support, these families now confront immense challenges caused by drastic reductions in federal assistance. These budget cuts threaten vital assistance programs, causing immediate and long-term impacts on Afghan refugee communities nationwide.
At the Sehat Initiative (SI), we stand at a pivotal crossroads. Our mission to provide compassionate and comprehensive health services to refugees is put to the test as never before. We urge funders to support SI, a pivotal project of the Center for Immigrant and Refugee Health (CIRH) at the Public Health Institute (PHI). SI is an Afghan-led community health initiative that provides culturally competent services tailored specifically to the unique needs of Afghan refugees. By supporting this initiative, funders enable direct community leadership, enhance culturally relevant health and social services, and foster resilience and integration within the Afghan refugee community. For more details on how your support can make a lasting impact, please visit www.sehatinitiative.org.
Let us reaffirm our shared values of compassion, dignity, and solidarity by standing firmly alongside Afghan refugees during these challenging times.
The time to act is now.
Who we are:
SEHAT Initiative (SI), a project of the Public Health Institute (PHI), has been established in response to the humanitarian and healthcare needs of refugee and immigrant populations. SI focuses on improving the health and well-being of the Afghan refugee and immigrant population in California and throughout the United States. Founded by medical and public health experts from within the refugee and immigrant community, SI serves as a crucial bridge between refugees and immigrants and their wider medical and social environment. SEHAT (صحت), the Arabic/Afghan word for health, foretells a healthy beginning of a new life in the United States. SI projects are implemented in close collaboration with refugees and immigrants, community-based organizations, researchers, and academic institutions.
Why we are needed:
The resettlement of refugees is a pressing issue, not only for the refugees, but also a wide assortment of service providers including federal, state, local health jurisdictions, resettlement agencies, physicians, healthcare providers, and school districts. Service providers lack sufficient culturally congruent technical expertise, leading to refugees' healthcare challenges being overlooked or overmedicalized. This in turn, results in needless suffering to refugees and enormous healthcare costs.
What we do:
Our refugee health experts provide evidence-based, culturally-congruent, and trauma-informed technical expertise, education, training, and consultation to refugees and health service providers, and conduct research to generate evidence and advance knowledge related to refugee health.
In its current capacity, SI provides support in three areas:
1) Education: Educate refugees on health and wellness and improve their access to healthcare services in the United States
2) Training: Train service providers on refugee health profile, evidence-based, culturally congruent, and trauma-informed services
3) Research: Conduct refugee health research and evaluation by employing validated scales and methods tailored for refugees