Barriers to care for refugees and migrants with diabetes

Each year, an estimated 17 million people die from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) before the age of 70 years; 86% of these deaths occur in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). Cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases, cancer, and complications of these conditions, account for most NCD-related morbidity and mortality. Populations forcibly displaced by humanitarian crises, including refugees and migrants, face disproportionately high risks of developing NCDs or worsening NCD complications and mortality. Trauma, stress, loss of access to medication and livelihoods, and poor access to healthy food directly contribute to these risks. Indirectly, disrupted health-care access due to targeted health facility destruction, loss of trained health personnel, and no access to essential medication and equipment amplify the risk of NCD complications.