ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the social work practices of working with refugees and asylum seekers. It describes some of the key debates in the literature on mental health and wellbeing, and how these intersect with the 'doing' of health-based social work with refugees and asylum seekers. The Australian Government has a commitment to providing support to refugees via its Humanitarian Program, which establishes an annual quota for entry, based on assessments provided by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The experiences of refugees and asylum seekers are characterised by conditions of conflict, political upheaval and economic instability. Many people have fled their homes in a state of emergency; in some cases they experienced torture, they may have witnessed the death or loss of their family and communities, and lived in camps with limited protection and facilities. Refugees and asylum seekers move between the two models of care— medical and social— often with restricted entitlements and limited status.
