| Aggression in Immigrants
When Seeking Help
Question:
I am (white/male) working in a hospital and frequently confrontated with agressive and claiming behaviour of patients from turkey or maroc
often they come with patient delay to the hospital and have no patience to wait
how do I deal with them?
Response:
Hello
I think there are a couple of reasons for these aggressive behaviors. Of course these are generalizations, so use caution in applying them.
One explanation is that white males are subconsciously intimidating to most people from previously colonized countries; their aggression is triggered by a fear of being disregarded or attended to. I doubt if they are even aware of this dynamic playing in themselves.
The second reason is their experience of shortage of facilities to meet the health needs of all the people in their home countries, resulting in the poor often being overlooked and pushed away. There is also a certain degree of distrust of the system… again due to their experience with failed systems. These kinds of unjust power plays breed aggressive demanding of services, fearing refusal.
In dealing with such people, a calm, patient and caring attitude helps. Indirectly address the fear by assuring them that they will be taken care of, give them honest and upfront information about how long they might need to wait, explain some of the routine and process of the system, etc.
Hope this helps
Regards,
Uzma Mazhar |
