<
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/sep/11/theyre-lifesavers-the-birmingham-clinic-giving-hope-to-traumatised-asylum-seekers>
"Azad*, an asylum seeker from Iran, recounts his story in a gentle and mild
manner, seated in the stillness of a therapy room at a trauma clinic in
Birmingham.
The centre, which opened its doors in July last year to address the “unmet
mental healthcare needs of those seeking sanctuary”, is run by Médecins Sans
Frontières (MSF), or Doctors Without Borders. It provides specialised
trauma-focused psychological care for refugees and asylum seekers in the city
and surrounding areas.
It has so far received more than 350 referrals from the NHS and refugee
organisations, and held 521 consultations for patients – many of whom have
survived conflict, persecution, torture and other forms of violence and
exploitation in their home countries or on their migration journey.
Data MSF shared with the
Guardian shows that of 150 case files reviewed by
MSF, 88% documented experiences of violence and one in three detailed suicidal
thoughts at the moment they came to MSF.
Azad, who arrived in the UK on a small boat, was approached by MSF at the hotel
he was being accommodated in Birmingham. He had known for a long time that he
needed help, he said, but had nowhere to turn. “It was the only person who
didn’t see me as a number, listened like I’m a human,” he said.
Azad’s journey to the UK had begun several years earlier, when the Iranian
authorities cracked down on protests that had swept across the country in late
2022 against the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody. She had
been arrested for allegedly violating rules requiring women to wear the
headscarf.
Azad, a Kurdish-Iranian civil engineer, took part in the demonstrations and
said he had witnessed people being shot and others blinded. After authorities
spotted him spraying graffiti, his father urged him to flee the country,
fearing for his safety. The authorities later ransacked his family home, he
said.
Azad travelled to Germany, where he applied for asylum but was rejected – a
decision he said was driven by a “racist” interviewer and delays that prevented
an appeal hearing. The decision left him feeling hopeless. “There were times
that I was feeling I have nothing to live for,” he said as he recalled an
attempt to take his own life.
The UK was his last and only option, he said. When he arrived, he alleged
border officials had sworn at him. MSF staff said the mental health struggles
of their patients had been further compounded by the rise in “hostility and
anti-migrant sentiment in the UK”.
Some of their clients had to be moved from hotels far-right protesters
routinely targeted. Others described being physically assaulted.
A clinical psychologist at the clinic, who did not want to be named, said:
“What they are routinely sharing with us is a lot of fear around the
environment in the UK. Attitudes towards migrants becoming more and feeling
more hostile.
“And that’s a combination of policy but also the general kind of narrative and
rhetoric within the UK.”"
Via Susan ****
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
