New research from Nicole Chicoine, online MPH student, explores the link between employment and health for Afghan refugees and immigrants.
New research led by online MPH student Nicole Chicoine highlights how improving employment opportunities for Afghan refugees and immigrants is critical to supporting their health and well-being. The research, part of Chicoine’s practicum experience at the Porsesh Policy Research Institute, explored barriers to employment like language access, and issues with job application processes and skill matching. “This practicum research helped to shed light on how unemployment and underemployment impacts mental health among Afghan immigrants, emphasizing the need for policies that address the root causes of health inequities,” Chicoine said. “My hope is that through a better understanding of these barriers like limited access to language classes or childcare, and through engaging directly with the community, we can drive meaningful change and equitable public health solutions for immigrant populations here in King County and Washington.”
Chicoine and Porsesh’s unique approach to research was highly informed by the Afghan immigrant community, who informed research questions, the wording of surveys and the sharing of findings. “Our way of approaching research is different,” said Ehsan Shayegan, president and founder of Porsesh and Chicoine’s site supervisor. “Researchers who go and collect data and do things in their own silos, that is an outdated approach because there is little humanity and credibility in that approach. After decades of conducting research in different parts of the globe, we learned that there is nuance that we miss in that siloed process that is so fundamental to the findings. In our research, we actively involve communities throughout the entire process: from design and implementation to dissemination.”