Citation

Armstrong S, Greenbaum VJ. Adv. Emerg. Nurs. J. 2019; 41(3): 244-260.

Affiliation

College of Nursing, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston (Dr Armstrong); and Institute for Healthcare and Human Trafficking, Stephanie V. Blank Center for Safe and Healthy Children, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Georgia (Dr Greenbaum).

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins)

DOI

10.1097/TME.0000000000000257

PMID

31356251

Abstract

Evidence suggests that trafficked persons in the United States frequently seek health care, yet little is known of their experiences, including reasons for seeking assistance, interactions with professionals, and barriers to obtaining care. To gain a better understanding, a search was conducted for empirical data collected directly from trafficked persons about their US health care experiences, published in peer-reviewed journals within the past 10 years, and in the English language. Four databases were searched and of the 1,605 articles initially identified, 8 met all inclusion criteria. Data from 420 participants demonstrated a wide range of physical and mental health complaints and 50%-98% reported seeking health care services in diverse medical settings during their exploitation. Barriers to care occurred at various levels, and although some are not modifiable, others are amendable by changes in the behaviors of professionals. A trauma-informed, rights-based approach to care would address many of these issues and create feasible treatment plans.

Language: en