Malta: assessing health-system capacity to manage sudden, large influxes of migrants (2015)

The WHO European health policy framework, Health 2020, draws particular attention to migration and health as one of the areas related to population vulnerability and human rights. Health 2020 provides a comprehensive framework, as well as values and approaches to action, that are much needed in public health work in this field.

Thousands of migrants have arrived in Malta, posing new challenges to the preparedness of the country's health system to manage a potential large influx of displaced populations and inspiring investment in emergency management and effective multisectoral coordination mechanisms. An assessment of Malta's health-system capacity to manage large influxes of migrants was jointly conducted by the country's Ministry for Energy and Health and the WHO Regional Office for Europe, within the framework of WHO's Public Health Aspects of Migration in Europe (PHAME) project. PHAME supports the continuing work of countries in the WHO European Region to strengthen their national and local capacities to address migrants' health needs, with a focus on public health. This report highlights Malta's current capacity to manage this issue and suggests possible ways forward.