Background: There is limited information on cardiovascular risk among migrants. We compared cardiovascular risk factors among three major migrant groups in Finland with the general population. Methods: Cross-sectional data from 30- to 64-year-old health examination participants ( n = 921) of the Migrant Health and Wellbeing Study (2010–12) were used. Data for comparison with the general Finnish population were obtained from the Health 2011 Study ( n = 892). Results: Russian men had a similar risk profile to that of the reference group. Kurdish men had lower prevalence of hypertension [prevalence ratio (PR) 0.55, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.39–0.79] but higher prevalence of dyslipidaemia (PR: 1.12, 95% CI: 1.02–1.24) and hyperglycaemia (PR: 2.61, 95% CI: 1.88–3.64) compared with the reference group. Somali men had lower prevalence of smoking (PR: 0.18, 95% CI: 0.08–0.44), hypertension (PR: 0.55, 95% CI: 0.32–0.97)) and obesity (PR: 0.35, 95% CI: 0.17–0.71) but higher prevalence of hyperglycaemia (PR: 2.59, 95% CI: 1.73–3.86) compared with the reference group. Similar patterns were observed for women, except for higher prevalence of hyperglycaemia among Russian women (PR: 1.95, 95% CI: 1.26–3.01) and obesity among Kurdish and Somali women (PR: 1.41, 95% CI: 1.15–1.72 and PR: 1.68, 95% CI: 1.40–2.03, respectively) compared with the reference group. All migrant women had significantly lower prevalence of smoking than the reference group. Conclusions: There were significant variations in cardiovascular risk profiles of Kurdish and Somali migrants compared with the general population. Differences in cardiovascular risk factors by migrant group need to be taken into account in planning and implementing health promotion strategies.

Mounting evidence suggests that migration background increases the risk of mental ill health, but that problems exist in accessing healthcare services in people of migrant origin. The present study uses a combination of register- and survey-based data to examine mental health-related health service use in three migrant origin populations as well as the correspondence between the need and use of services. The data are from the Finnish Migrant Health and Wellbeing Study (Maamu), a comprehensive cross-sectional interview and a health examination survey. A random sample consisted of 5909 working-aged adults of Russian, Somali, and Kurdish origin of which 3000 were invited to participate in the survey and the rest were drawn for a register-based approach. Some of the mental health services, based on registers, were more prevalent in the Kurdish origin group in comparison with the general population and less prevalent in the Russian and Somali origin groups. All the migrant origin groups were underrepresented in rehabilitation services. When affective symptoms were taken into account, all the migrant origin groups were underrepresented in all of the services. This calls for actions to promote mental health, diminish the barriers to access services, and improve the service paths for migrants.

Background: Social listening, the process of monitoring and analyzing conversations to inform communication activities, is an essential component of infodemic management. It helps inform context-specific communication strategies that are culturally acceptable and appropriate for various subpopulations. Social listening is based on the notion that target audiences themselves can best define their own information needs and messages. Objective: This study aimed to describe the development of systematic social listening training for crisis communication and community outreach during the COVID-19 pandemic through a series of web-based workshops and to report the experiences of the workshop participants implementing the projects. Methods: A multidisciplinary team of experts developed a series of web-based training sessions for individuals responsible for community outreach or communication among linguistically diverse populations. The participants had no previous training in systematic data collection or monitoring. This training aimed to provide participants with sufficient knowledge and skills to develop a social listening system based on their specific needs and available resources. The workshop design took into consideration the pandemic context and focused on qualitative data collection. Information on the experiences of the participants in the training was gathered based on participant feedback and their assignments and through in-depth interviews with each team. Results: A series of 6 web-based workshops was conducted between May and September 2021. The workshops followed a systematic approach to social listening and included listening to web-based and offline sources; rapid qualitative analysis and synthesis; and developing communication recommendations, messages, and products. Follow-up meetings were organized between the workshops during which participants could share their achievements and challenges. Approximately 67% (4/6) of the participating teams established social listening systems by the end of the training. The teams tailored the knowledge provided during the training to their specific needs. As a result, the social systems developed by the teams had slightly different structures, target audiences, and aims. All resulting social listening systems followed the taught key principles of systematic social listening to collect and analyze data and used these new insights for further development of communication strategies. Conclusions: This paper describes an infodemic management system and workflow based on qualitative inquiry and adapted to local priorities and resources. The implementation of these projects resulted in content development for targeted risk communication, addressing linguistically diverse populations. These systems can be adapted for future epidemics and pandemics.

Introduction Health, well-being and health service needs of asylum seekers have emerged as urgent topics following the arrival of 2.5 million asylum seekers to the European Union (EU) between 2015 and 2016. However, representative information on the health, well-being and service needs of asylum seekers is scarce. The Asylum Seekers Health and Wellbeing (TERTTU) Survey aims to: (1) gather population-based representative information; (2) identify key indicators for systematic monitoring; (3) produce the evidence base for development of systematic screening of asylum seekers’ health, well-being and health service needs. Methods and analysis TERTTU Survey is a population-based prospective study with a total population sample of newly arrived asylum seekers to Finland, including adults and children. Baseline data collection is carried out in reception centres in 2018 and consists of a face-to-face interview, self-administered questionnaire and a health examination following a standardised protocol. Altogether 1000 asylum seekers will be included into the study. Baseline data will be followed up with national electronic health record data encompassing the entire asylum process and later with national register data among persons who receive residency permits. Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval has been granted by the Coordinating Ethics Committee of the Helsinki and Uusimaa Hospital District. Participation is voluntary and based on written informed consent. Results will be widely disseminated on a national and international level to inform health and welfare policy as well as development of services for asylum seekers. Results of the study will constitute the evidence base for development and implementation of the initial health assessment for asylum seekers on a national level.

Objectives To compare the performance of body mass index (BMI), waist-to-height ratio (WHtR), waist circumference (WC) and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) in detecting type 2 diabetes among Russian, Somali and Kurdish (born in Iraq/Iran) origin migrants and Finns. Design and participants Cross-sectional study comparing health examination survey data of Russian, Somali and Kurdish origin migrants (n=917) aged 30–64 years who took part in the Migrant Health and Wellbeing Survey with the general Finnish population in the Health 2011 Survey (n=887). Participants were randomly selected from the National Population Register. Setting Six cities in Finland, where a substantial majority of migrants live. Outcome measures Anthropometric measures included objectively measured BMI, WHtR, WC and WHR. Type 2 diabetes was defined based on self-report, laboratory measures of glycated haemoglobin and register data. Test performance was assessed using receiver operating characteristics curves, using area under the curve (AUC) as a measure of accuracy. Results Among Finns, test performance was highest for WC (AUC=0.81, 95% CI 0.74 to 0.87) and WHtR (AUC=0.81, 95% CI 0.75 to 0.87). Test performance was similar for BMI (AUC=0.80, 95% CI 0.67 to 0.92), WC (AUC=0.79, 95% CI 0.67 to 0.91) and WHtR (AUC=0.70, 95% CI 0.66 to 0.93) among Russians. WC and WHtR had highest test performance also among Somali (AUC=0.74, 95% CI 0.64 to 0.84 for WC and AUC=0.75, 95% CI 0.65 to 0.85 for WHtR) and Kurds (AUC=0.71, 95% CI 0.61 to 0.81 for WC and AUC=0.70, 95% CI 0.59 to 0.80 for WHtR).Among migrants, WHR had the poorest test performance. Conclusion WC and WHtR performed overall the best across all study groups, however, accuracy of detection was lower particularly among Somali and Kurds. Currently used diabetes risk assessment tools assume a strong association between anthropometrics and diabetes. These tools need to be validated among non-Western populations.