specific needs of children and elderly left behind as a ... - IOM Moldova

The health of family members The involved perception in the of migration labour migration process
1.4. The health of family members involved in
the migration process
The World Health Organization defines good health not only as an absence
of diseases but as the complete physical, mental and social well-being of a
person. Thus, the health analysis of the population involves a wide assessment
from the perspective of the following three dimensions: biological
(or physical), psychological and social. Respectively, the health as a multifactorial
concept is conditioned by a set of determinant factors:
• Biological (genetics, demographical characteristics of population),
• Environmental (physical, chemical, social and cultural – water access,
hygiene, habitat, etc.),
• Behaviour (attitude, customs, lifestyle),
• Health services (prevention, curative and rehabilitation).
From a biological point of view, health can be defined as the state of a
body that is not touched by any disease, where all organs and systems are
functioning normally. Even if genetics determine somebody to be prone to
many diseases it has been proven that lifestyle and environmental factors
can condition their activation. Thus, the biological dimension of health
directly depends upon the activities the person conducts (avoiding stress,
fatigue, etc.), healthy eating, avoiding risky behaviour (smoking, alcohol
and drugs), access to medical care services, personal hygiene, etc.
The health of children and elderly left behind by family members who migrated
abroad was analyzed in this respect, with the intention to identify
non-biological factors that influence (or can affect) their health and adequate
psychological and psychical development.
Children
• Assessing the effects of the environmental factors and living conditions
Parents going abroad do this for financial benefit, leaving children in the
care of their grandparents, relatives, friends, or even on their own (alone).
Still parental departure results in most cases in a radical change of the
environment and living conditions of children left behind. This situation
involves interrupting the life that they got used to and changing their
comfortable environment, making children suffer from the absence of their
home and family that induces a strong emotional problem. All children involved
in the study mentioned that they experienced a psychological and
emotional imbalance that appeared once their parents had left.
It is known that the physical condition of every person is strongly influenced
by their psychical state. When people suffer from psycho-emotional
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