Project description
Intra-EU returned migrants: Post-Brexit impact and social determinants of health
The EU-funded RETORNO study intends to investigate how Brexit could affect social and health issues in returned migrants between the United Kingdom and Spain. Intra-EU migration policies interact with social determinants of health, including the circumstances in which people are born, grow, live, work and age. These vary depending on how policies distribute money, power and resources, and have an impact on people’s health. Using an innovative review methodology with co-production stakeholder workshops (such as NGOs, diplomatic representations and policymakers), the project seeks to uncover the mechanisms and contextual factors (i.e. specific interventions or policies) that generate health inequalities, focusing on those related to gender. This study will provide an evidence-based context-sensitive theory on how to improve the conditions of intra-EU returned migrants’ health.
Objective
Migration policies in EU countries interact with structural social determinants of health (unemployment, social/health insurance, housing provision, pension schemes), unequal social structures (gender, ethnicity, class), intermediary social determinants (working and living conditions, health and social care systems) and social cohesion/capital. Consequently, return migration’ interventions for social determinants of health (SDH) may work well in one context to reduce social health inequalities but inadequately in others.
This study will develop an evidence-based context-sensitive theory of how intra-EU returned migrants’ health could be improved using the case study of return migration between the UK and Spain post-Brexit referendum. It will aim to explore how Brexit could affect health and social care services provision for returned migrants and the implications for different stakeholders (migrant NGOs, Embassies/Consulates, health and social care staff, policy makers); to classify interventions for SDH to understand for whom, under what circumstances, in what respects and why they may impact returned migrants health inequalities; to identify contextual factors and main mechanisms triggered by interventions and how these impact health outcomes, focusing on gender inequalities; and to provide a co-produced theory on how public policies may impact EU citizens after residing in other EU member states.
The study will use an innovative realist synthesis methodology with nested co-production stakeholder workshops in five methodological phases: 1) Consolidate scope; 2) search for evidence; 3) appraise studies and extract data; 4) synthesize evidence and draw conclusions; 5) disseminate, implement and evaluate. Anticipated findings will provide policy makers with stronger evidence to support future national and European policies based on complex changing socio-economic realities that impact EU returned migrants’ health, while adding to migration movements´ theory.
Fields of science
- social sciencespolitical sciencespolitical policiespublic policies
- social sciencespolitical sciencespolitical policiescivil societynongovernmental organizations
- social sciencessociologysocial issuessocial inequalitiesgender inequality
- social sciencessociologyanthropologyethnology
- social sciencessociologydemographyhuman migrations
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
MSCA-IF-EF-ST - Standard EFCoordinator
LS2 9JT Leeds
United Kingdom