Refugee Health Program: Additional Resources Learn more about refugee resettlement and refugee health. This information may be helpful for anyone supporting or identified as a/an: Refugee Asylee Cuban/Haitian entrant Victim of trafficking Amerasian Afghan or Ukrainian humanitarian parolee Special Immigrant Visa holder General Resources - Physical Health Health Information Translations – Provides plain language health education resources for health care professionals working in communities with limited English proficient populations HealthReach: Health Information in Many Languages – Includes information about the potential health conditions and cultural experiences of refugees and asylees Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health (HHS OMH) Think Cultural Health – Provides information on the flagship initiative of the OMH Center for Linguistic and Cultural Competence in Health Care with the goal of advancing health equity at every point of contact through the development and promotion of culturally and linguistically appropriate services Immunize.org works with the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Together they educate health professionals about U.S. vaccine recommendations. They also have vaccine information for professionals and their patients in 50 languages. The site includes infant, child, teen, and adult informational handouts MedlinePlus – Produced by the National NLM, it brings you information about diseases, conditions, and wellness issues in language you can understand as well as reliable, up-to-date health information, anytime, anywhere, and for free Office of Refugee Resettlement – Oversees the Refugee Medical Assistance and Refugee Medical Screening programs in collaboration with the Division of Refugee Assistance Practicing Cultural Humility when Serving Immigrant and Refugee Communities- A guide from EthnoMed on cultural humility for clinicians and providers. Health Coverage Options for Afghan Evacuees (PDF)—An online document by CMS (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services). It outlines eligibility and services for Afghan evacuees. General Resources - Mental Health Afghan Behavioral Health Support: The Office of Refugee Resettlement's new website offers Afghan behavioral health support including the new wellness helpline (1-800-615-6514), which offers counseling services to newcomers who are experiencing distress. Counseling is culturally appropriate and available in Dari, Pashto, and English. Service providers could also utilize the 24/7 helpline. Afghan Humanitarian Arrivals: Post resettlement stressors, coping strategies, and the Afghan Symptom Checklist—A Center of Excellence webinar. It has examples of the stresses facing Afghan arrivals. It also outlines cultural understanding of distress and mental health, how to get help, and use of the Afghan Symptom Checklist. Mental Health First Aid—A website with trainings, courses, and resources on how to identify and support those with mental health or substance abuse problems. Refugee Trauma—From the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. A website with information on the experience of refugees, the effects of trauma, screening and assessment tools, interventions, and resources. Psychological First Aid—A website by Unbound Medicine. with the “Who, What, Where, When, and Why” of Psychological First Aid as well as implementation. The 5 Components of Psychological First Aid—An article on the tools of PFA that can be used to “help patients as they respond to traumatic events.” Guide to Trauma-Informed Care: Preventing Crises and De-escalating Difficult Situations—A guide to help service providers interact with refugees in a trauma-informed way. Bearing Witness: Traumatic Stress and the Helping Professional—A webinar by the University of Minnesota’s Center for Practice Transformation. It focuses on how to identify and manage secondary traumatic stress. It also details the differences between secondary traumatic stress, vicarious trauma, moral injury, compassion fatigue, and burnout. "I Was Already Burned Out, and Now This..." Strategies for Staff and Supervisors to Mitigate Burnout, Vicarious Trauma, and Other Occupational Hazards—A 2020 Switchboard training for front-line and management staff who work with refugees. It outlines types of occupational hazards for emotional distress and how to respond. ProQOL Secondary Traumatic Stress Handout—A PDF handout by ProQOL with English, Arabic, and Kiswahili translations. It outlines the definition of secondary traumatic stress. It also lists symptoms, risk factors, and self-care practices. NCTSN Secondary Traumatic Stress Series—A series of webinars by the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. It includes “Cultural Implications of Secondary Traumatic Stress,” “Secondary Traumatic Stress and Provider Self Care in Disaster and Terrorism Settings, Organizational Secondary Traumatic Stress,” and “Secondary Traumatic Stress...What is it?” Working with Young People in the Trauma Space: Vicarious Trauma—An Orygen webinar for professionals working with young people who have gone through trauma and injustice. It describes a framework of self-care rather than specific self-care practices. Lead Poisoning Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention: Refugees and Other Newcomer Persons Resettled in the United States—A CDC webpage on the higher risk of lead poisoning in refugee and other newcomer children. It includes details on the causes and risk factors of exposure. It also gives lead screening recommendations and has case studies. Lead Poisoning in Children public service announcement video —A video by Washington's Afghan Health Initiative. It explains the risk of lead poisoning as well as the causes of lead exposure and how to prevent it. (Farsi | Pashto) Screening for Lead During the Domestic Medical Examination for Newly Arrived Refugees—A CDC webpage on lead exposure and lead screening recommendations. Surma Can Poison Children (PDF)—An infographic by Western States Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit. It has information on lead poisoning, products with high lead content, safer product alternatives, and testing. (Dari | Pashto | Urdu) Milwaukee's Lead Service Line Replacement Program - The City of Milwaukee is working to reduce lead in drinking water through a program to replace roughly 65,000 residential lead service lines. Find out if your home may still have lead service lines using this map Learn about reducing risks to lead exposure if you find that your home may be at risk Culturally-informed care for Afghans Afghan Clinic – Website with information about the Afghan Clinic, a public health initiative created by and for Afghan refugees to promote the wellbeing of Afghan people. See this article in a UC Berkeley publication about the initiative. Obstetric Care in Afghanistan and How to Provide Obstetric Care for Afghan Refugee Patients in the U.S. (2017) (PDF)—A short paper focusing on culturally-informed ante- and perinatal care for Afghan patients. To learn more, see the Maternity section under “Translated Health Resources.” You’ll find translated information and resources on maternal health. Afghan Evacuees Health Resources—A resource hub from the University of Minnesota. It includes medical conditions, screening tools, and cultural training tools and resources. Afghanistan - Culture, Etiquette, and Business Practices—A webpage with details on many parts of Afghan culture. This includes language, religion and beliefs, social etiquette, and customs. Afghanistan Health Profile—A data profile from UNICEF on child health in Afghanistan. Cultural Quick Reference Guide for Afghanistan—A guide by the Southeastern National Tuberculosis Center. It has information on Afghan cultural norms, health information, communication, and country-specific TB facts. Traveler's Health Guide to Afghanistan (2025) —This guide from the CDC offers a profile of various health concerns in Afghanistan. Afghan Culture and Health Screening Considerations(opens external video)—A webinar by the Center of Excellence in Newcomer Health. It outlines entry pathways for Afghans. It also details health concerns and cultural issues. Translated Health Resources for Afghans Chickenpox Chickenpox vaccine fact sheet (Immunization Action Coalition): Vaccine fact sheet in English (PDF) Vaccine fact sheet in Dari (PDF) Vaccine fact sheet in Pashto (PDF) Hepatitis Hepatitis A - General Fact Sheet (CDC) Masking How to wear a mask PSA (CDC): How to wear a mask PSA in English How to wear a mask PSA in Dari How to wear a mask PSA in Pashto Key times to wear a mask PSA (CDC): When to wear a mask PSA in English When to wear a mask PSA in Dari When to wear a mask PSA in Pashto Maternity Breastfeeding is Important (Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services): Breastfeeding fact sheet in English (PDF) Breastfeeding fact sheet in Farsi (PDF) Breastfeeding Plan (Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services): Breastfeeding plan in English (PDF) Breastfeeding plan in Farsi (PDF) Engorgement (Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services): Engorgement in English (PDF) Engorgement in Farsi (PDF) Hand Expression (Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services): Hand expression in English (PDF) Hand expression in Farsi (PDF) How to Know Your Baby is Getting Enough (Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services): Is your baby getting enough? in English (PDF) Is your baby getting enough in Farsi (PDF) Pre and Postnatal Maternal Warning Signs (CDC): Pre- and postnatal maternal warning signs in Dari (PDF) Pre- and postnatal maternal warning signs in Pashto (PDF) Sore Nipples (Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services): Sore nipples in English (PDF) Sore Nipples in Farsi (PDF) Medication Picking up medications(opens external video) – scroll through right panel once hyperlink is opened to select from 15 languages Measles, mumps, and Rubella MMR vaccine fact sheet (Immunization Action Coalition): MMR vaccine fact sheet in English (PDF) MMR vaccine fact sheet in Dari (PDF) MMR vaccine fact sheet in Pashto (PDF) Polio Polio vaccine fact sheet (Immunization Action Coalition): Polio vaccine fact sheet in English (PDF) Polio vaccine fact sheet in Dari (PDF) Polio vaccine fact sheet in Pashto (PDF) Tuberculosis Active Tuberculosis Disease fact sheet, P-42099: Patient focused fact sheet on active tuberculosis (Available in English, Hmong, Burmese, Spanish, Russian, Dari, Kirundi, and Ukrainian.) Latent Tuberculosis Infection fact sheet, P-2099B: Patient focused fact sheet on latent tuberculosis infection (Available in English, Hmong, Burmese, Spanish, Russian, Dari, Kirundi, and Ukrainian.) Tuberculosis in Wisconsin one-page fact sheet, P-02194 (Available in English, Hmong, Burmese, Spanish, Russian, Dari, Kirundi, and Ukrainian.) How Can I Prevent TB, P-02504 (PDF): Informative patient focused document about preventing TB (Available in English, Hmong, Burmese, Spanish, Russian, Dari, Kirundi, and Ukrainian.) SNTC "You Can Prevent Tuberculosis: A Patient Educational Handout" (SNTC): Dari/English Pashto/English Ukrainian Health Resources Health Education and Communication Tools—Health education tools from the CDC. These focus on refugee, immigrant, and migrant communities and others who don’t speak English well. Vaccine Information Statements—Links to CDC’s vaccine information statements. The information is also available in multiple languages. *DISCLAIMER: Some state and federal agencies are reviewing their websites. Some of the links on this page may have been recently updated.
