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Afghanistan is a country that is primarily populated by practising Muslims, and they heavily rely on their faith in Allah (God) (Queensland Health, 2011). Therefore, a health belief practiced by Afghan culture is the performance of Salah (prayer) and making du'a (part of prayer, where you seek guidance and ask for help). They are required to perform personal hygiene prior to performing prayer (Queensland Health, 2011). This includes performing wudu (ablution), which involves washing certain parts of the body three times: face, arms up to the elbow and feet. During prayer, Muslims make du’a at the end, asking Allah to bless the individual and their family with good health.

Reference:

Queensland Health. (2011). Afghan community health and wellbeing report. Queensland Government. https://www.health.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0032/156398/afghan2011.pdf

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Reference:

Gentilini, F., & Arnone, A. (2013). Afghan lessons: Culture, diplomacy, and counterinsurgency. Palgrave Macmillan.

Condra, J. (2013). Encyclopedia of national dress : traditional clothing around the world. ABC-CLIO.

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Modren Long Afghan Kochi Arabic Style Long Maxi Party Dress for Women - Etsy

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Domain 1.1 from Culturally Responsive Clinical Practice Framework highlights the importance of being culturally considerate and unassuming. For me the most relevant aspect of domain 1.1 was how important it is for a practicing nurse to strictly restrain from making assumptions when faced with migrant or refugee patients (Culturally Responsive Clinical Practice: Working with People from Migrant and Refugee Backgrounds, 2019). I have improved my ability to be more understanding and thoughtful to minimise the occurrence of refugee/migrant patients facing these types of difficult situations. Having experienced this circumstance occur in real life, I now know how it heavily impacts the patients. This knowledge will be essential to me in the workplace because I will be more attentive and informative about my learning towards others (Culturally Responsive Clinical Practice: Working with People from Migrant and Refugee Backgrounds, 2019).

Reference:

-       Migrant and Refugee Women’s Health Partnership. (2019). Culturally responsive clinical practice: Working with people from migrant and refugee backgrounds - Competency standards framework for clinicians. https://moodleprod.murdoch.edu.au/pluginfile.php/4119639/mod_resource/content/3/Culturally-responsive-clinical-practice-Working-with-people-from-migrant-and-refugee-backgrounds-Jan2019.pdf

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Many Afghan migrants and refugees who are now in Australia would have experienced harsh living conditions in terms of income, basic amenities, education and food security. Specifically, education is a right that many Afghans have been deprived from, especially women (Queensland health, 2011). Statistics show that only 12.6% of female within Afghanistan are literate. Considering this social determinant, it means that the majority of the people who come to Australia from Afghanistan have little to no knowledge of health literacy, which makes it harder for them to navigate their way around costs, accessibility and eligibility for Medicare when it comes to healthcare (Goliaei, Gonzalez, Diaz Rios, Pokhrel, & Burke, 2023, p. 2).

Reference:

Goliaei, Z., Gonzalez, M., Diaz Rios, K., Pokhrel, M., & Burke, N. J. (2023). Post-Resettlement Food Insecurity: Afghan Refugees and Challenges of the New Environment. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(10), 5846-. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20105846

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Mental Health - Health issue faced by Afghan refugees

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Mental Health - Health issue faced by Afghan refugees

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Study shows that Afghan refugees are known to be suffering from mental health upon arrival to Australia (Australian Refugee Health Practice Guide, 2018). Due to ongoing conflict in Afghanistan, majority of the population are known to have suffered from severe mental health issues due to loss of family, torture, living conditions and breach of human rights (Australian Refugee Health Practice Guide, 2018). This gets worsened when they are to stay at refugee camps, which puts them in a situation of uncertainty and fear due to displacement (Essar, Siddiqui, & Head, 2023). Finally, upon arrival to Australia, Afghan refugees are highly likely to face social isolation and experience difficulty navigating their way around this new life they have to adjust to. In order to address this issue and reduce it, healthcare providers must introduce the Afghan refugee and migrant community to ‘Mental Health’ (Queensland Health, 2011). Due to many Afghan families continuously disregarding mental health as not an actual health issue, they, as a community, have little to no knowledge of what it is. This leads to many Afghans moving through life with mental health issues without receiving help. Therefore, educating them as a community about ‘Mental Health’ will lead them to be more open to receiving the help that is available. For example, inviting the community to an event that specifically addresses ‘Mental Health’ to educate them.

Reference:

Essar, M. Y., Siddiqui, A., & Head, M. G. (2023). Infectious diseases in Afghanistan: Strategies for health system improvement. Health Science Reports, 6(12), e1775. https://doi.org/10.1002/hsr2.1775

Foundation House. (2018). Australian refugee health practice guide. Australian Government Department of Health. Retrieved from https://refugeehealthguide.org.au/about-this-practice-guide/

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Mental Health - Health issue faced by Afghan refugees

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Afghan cuisine is heavily influenced by its diverse ethnic groups, making it a platter of flavours and traditions that have come together. Popular Afghan dishes are known as pulao (rice that’s rich in flavour due to the usage of a variety of spices), kebabs, mantu (dumpling-like, filled with spiced beef mince), ashak (similar to mantu but fillings usually include green onion), bolani (flatbread that’s stuffed with either meat or vegetables) and korma (similar to curry but reduced spice levels) (Charabati, 2012). These are only a few of the dishes and are usually made during mehmanis (big family gatherings).

Reference:

Charabati, T., & O’Meara, M. (2012). Food safari. Series 4, episode 8, Afghan food safari. Special Broadcasting Service Corporation.

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Afghanistan is a multilingual country, each city within the country speaks different languages. These are Pashto, Dari, Uzbek, Turkmen, Balochi, Nuristani, Pashayi and Hazaragi (Condra, 2013, p. 1).

Reference:

Condra, J. (2013). Encyclopedia of national dress : traditional clothing around the world. ABC-CLIO.