The Health Protection Agency (HPA) has launched the Migrant Health Guide, a free-to-use resource that aims to assist primary health care practitioners who look after people who have come to live in the UK from abroad.

The Migrant Health Guide is intended to be a “one stop shop” for information to support GPs and nurses in assessing and treating migrant patients, in recognition of the fact that these patients sometimes have health needs which are more complex than those of UK born patients. The guide presents information in an easy-to-use format by displaying key messages that the busy practitioner can read quickly in a standard ten minute consultation.  Increased levels of information and links to useful resources (e.g. printable patient information leaflets in a range of languages) are also available for those who require these.

The guide has been developed by a team of clinical and public health experts, as well as primary care practitioners, in collaboration with the HPA’s travel and migrant health section. It has been endorsed by both the Royal College of General Practitioners and the Royal College of Nursing.

The Health Protection Agency is an independent UK organisation that was set up by the government in 2003 to protect the public from threats to their health from infectious diseases and environmental hazards.  It does this by providing advice and information to the general public, to health professionals such as doctors and nurses, and to national and local government.