TY - JOUR
T1 - Evaluation of the US detention standards to protect the health and dignity of migrants
T2 - a systematic review of national health standards
AU - Tejkl, Lauren
AU - Tellez, David
AU - Mclaughlin, Dana
AU - Savold, Jordan
AU - Vasquez, Cyndy
AU - Abrahim, Orit
AU - Spiegel, Paul
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 Author(s). Published by BMJ.
PY - 2023/4/18
Y1 - 2023/4/18
N2 - Objective The US government detains hundreds of thousands of migrants across a network of facilities each year. This research aims to evaluate the completeness of standards across US detention agencies to protect the health and dignity of migrants. Design Five documents from three US agencies were examined in a systematic review: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE; 3), Customs and Border Protection (CBP; 1) and Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR; 1). Standards within five public health categories (health, hygiene, shelter, food and nutrition, protection) were extracted from each document and coded by subcategory and area. Areas were classified as critical, essential or supportive. Standards were measured for specificity, measurability, attainability, relevancy and timeliness (SMART), resulting in a sufficiency score (0%-100%). Average sufficiency scores were calculated for areas and agencies. Results 711 standards were extracted within 5 categories, 12 subcategories and 56 areas. 284 standards of the 711 standards were included in multiple (2-7) areas, resulting in 1173 standards counted as many times as each was included. On average, 85.4% of standards were specific, 87.1% measurable, 96.6% attainable and 74.9% time-bound. All standards were considered relevant. CBP standards were the least sufficient across all other SMART components, when compared with ICE and ORR. Conclusions There are disparate detention standards based on agencies' mandates and type of facility contracts. Migrants should be ensured of their public health rights and services in all spaces they occupy, and for any length of time regardless of who manages the facility. As long as detention remains a policy, the US should develop comprehensive, consistent and complementary standards for all detention facilities or pursue alternatives to detention.
AB - Objective The US government detains hundreds of thousands of migrants across a network of facilities each year. This research aims to evaluate the completeness of standards across US detention agencies to protect the health and dignity of migrants. Design Five documents from three US agencies were examined in a systematic review: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE; 3), Customs and Border Protection (CBP; 1) and Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR; 1). Standards within five public health categories (health, hygiene, shelter, food and nutrition, protection) were extracted from each document and coded by subcategory and area. Areas were classified as critical, essential or supportive. Standards were measured for specificity, measurability, attainability, relevancy and timeliness (SMART), resulting in a sufficiency score (0%-100%). Average sufficiency scores were calculated for areas and agencies. Results 711 standards were extracted within 5 categories, 12 subcategories and 56 areas. 284 standards of the 711 standards were included in multiple (2-7) areas, resulting in 1173 standards counted as many times as each was included. On average, 85.4% of standards were specific, 87.1% measurable, 96.6% attainable and 74.9% time-bound. All standards were considered relevant. CBP standards were the least sufficient across all other SMART components, when compared with ICE and ORR. Conclusions There are disparate detention standards based on agencies' mandates and type of facility contracts. Migrants should be ensured of their public health rights and services in all spaces they occupy, and for any length of time regardless of who manages the facility. As long as detention remains a policy, the US should develop comprehensive, consistent and complementary standards for all detention facilities or pursue alternatives to detention.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85152863557&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85152863557&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-069949
DO - 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-069949
M3 - Article
C2 - 37072359
AN - SCOPUS:85152863557
SN - 2044-6055
VL - 13
JO - BMJ open
JF - BMJ open
IS - 4
M1 - e069949
ER -