Table 1.

Study characteristics of community-based mental health interventions among resettled refugees from Muslim-majority countries

Author	Purpose	Design	Intervention	Participants	Community setting/involvement	Results/mental health outcomes
Baird et al. (2017)	To evaluate the acceptability and feasibility of a community-based, culturally tailored mental health intervention	Mixed-methods, pre-and post-test intervention design including interviews with participants	Healthy Sudanese Families: a 10-week educational and social support program	n = 12 South Sudanese refugee women between 29 and 66 years old	Partnership with a Sudanese Church; Church endorsed the project and gave approval to use Church space to implement project	The majority of the post-intervention Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25 (HSCL) scores were higher than the pre-intervention scores for both the anxiety and depression subscales at both individual and group levels. Eight of 15 items on the depression subscale increased post-intervention. Scores on six of the ten items on the anxiety subscale increased post-intervention. Three themes corroborate quantitative findings: knowledge and awareness of mental disorders, stigma, and empowerment
Betancourt et al. (2020)	To pilot a feasibility and acceptability trial of the home-visiting Family Strengthening Intervention	Randomized quantitative study (randomized between intervention or care as usual)	Home-Visiting Family Strengthening Intervention for Refugees (FSI-R)	A total of 40 Somali Bantu (n = 103 children, 58.40% female; n = 43 caregivers, 79.00% female and 40 Bhutanese (n = 49 children, 55.30% female; n = 62 caregivers, 54.00% female) families were randomized to receive FSI-R or CAU	Refugee community members were engaged at every phase of the pilot and worked as interventionists, research assistants (RAs), and community advisory board (CAB) members. Staff was from the two refugee communities and affiliated with community advocacy and local social service agencies	The program retention rate of 82.50% indicates high feasibility, and high reports of satisfaction (81.50%) indicate community acceptance. The FSI-R children reported reduced traumatic stress reactions, and caregivers reported fewer child depression symptoms compared with care as usual families
Chase & Rousseau, (2018)	An ethnographic case study of a community day center for asylum seekers as early-stage mental health intervention	Qualitative study with the analysis done through utilizing an ethnographic methodology, use of field notes and	Community Day Center	Interviews with n = 15 diverse English or French-speaking participants including nine asylum seekers, five accepted refugees (former asylum seekers), and one non-refugee staff membersAge of asylum seeker/refugee interviewees ranged from 26 to 55 years old	Researchers were unable to hire professional interpreters to assist with interviews due to budget constraints. While they had initially planned to work with volunteer interpreters, concerns over privacy expressed by potential participants and the sensitivity of interview content dissuaded them from engaging in this strategy	Interviews identified aspects of wellbeing and the salient threats to wellbeing related to safety and security, bonds and social networks, injustice and human rights violations, threats to roles and identity, and existential meaning. Participants elaborated pathways through which participation in the Day Center worked to remediate these threats, supporting how the Day Center shows significant promise as an innovative early-stage mental health intervention for precarious status migrants
Govindasamy et al. (2011)	An ethnographic process evaluation of a community support program with Sudanese refugee women	Qualitative analysis of a group interview and ethnographic process evaluation techniques	Sudanese women’s group: Exercise program	n = 12 Sudanese Refugee Women between 25 and 41 years old	The Penrith Women’s Health Centre (PWHC) and NSW Sport and Recreation co-funded the program, facilitated by a PWHC community worker and interpreter. Staff were involved in group activities that included formulation of research questions. A final report was disseminated to PWHCThe program was facilitated by a PWHC community worker andan interpreter,	Participants identified exercise benefits were not merely physical, and viewed the program positively due to educational components and the opportunity for respite. Transportation and childcare were perceived as critical components. Women identified ongoing resettlement stressors.
Uribe Guajardo et al. (2018)	To evaluate a face-to-face mental health literacy course for community-based workers providing initial help to Iraqi refugees	Qualitative study utilizing uncontrolled pre, post and follow-up design	Face-to-face mental health literacy course	n = 86 Adults Iraqi refugees. Average years of age=44.1	Participants were community-based workers, based in Western Sydney, assisting Iraqi refugees on their resettlement.	Improvements were reported in confidence of participants when helping an Iraqi refugee with PSTD and depression.
Hess et al. (2014)	Reducing mental health disparities through transformative learning: A social change model with refugees and students	Mixed methods study within-group longitudinal design	Refugee Well-being Project	n = 36 African adult refugees and n = 53 undergraduate students	Students involved in the study were from a local university, and the refugees in the study were contacted by a local refugee resettlement agency to describe the intervention and ask if they were interested in learning more.	Student participants reported in the RWP constituted a transformative learning experience, through which refugees and students came to new understandings of the relationship between social inequities and well-being
Polcher et al. (2016)	To initiate early mental health screening for newly resettled adult refugees	Non-randomized quantitative study	Pilot Project	n = 178 Adult refugees from 8 countries (Bhutan, Iraq, Somalia, Congo, Sudan, Burma, Iran, Eritrea)	Family Healthcare a community health clinic; contracted with Family Healthcare to provide initial refugee health screening and treatment within the first few months after arrival	Iraq Refugees had significantly higher scores than other refugees in screening. Only 50% of refugees who screened positive on the RHS-15 agreed for treatment for their psychological distress
Salt et al. (2017)	To pilot the Refugee Health Screener-15 (RHS-15) to assess mental health, the intervention, and to identify internal and structural barriers affecting resettlement with a refugee women’s sewing group	Non-randomized quantitative collaborative study utilizing social ecological approach.	Pathways to Wellness (PW) intervention	n = 12 refugee women from five countries (Somalia, Iran, Nepal, Burma, Chad)	Lutheran Community Services Northwest (LCSNW) in Seattle worked with collaborators, professional translators, and the refugee community to develop, test, and validate the RHS-15 as an effective screener for mental health. A community partnership was established with the Center for Refugee Services (CRS). The CRS assisted with the recruitment of interpreters and translators for the study.	80% of the participants at baseline RHS-15 scored required referrals for follow-up. There was no statistically significant difference in the total scores for the baseline RHS-15 survey (M = 25.00, SD = 16.33) and the post-intervention RHS-15 survey (M = 27.00, SD = 13.76). The baseline intervention survey (M = 33.20, SD = 7.81) and post-intervention survey (M = 31.90, SD = 6.11) difference in scores was not significant.
Shah et al. (2019)	To explore refugees’ perceptions of the impact of communication through ICTs on their mental health, the exercise of agency by refugees within the context of ICT use	The qualitative component of each interview involved a semi-structured interview guide. Constructivist grounded theory guided the qualitative analysis	Data from the Refugee Well-being Project	n = 290 Adult Refugees from Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and the Great Lakes region of Africa (Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda)	Unclear	Participants described a range of mental health effects. ICTs, as channels of communication between separated families, were a major source of emotional social support and mental well-being for a large number of refugee participants. However, for some participants, the communication process with separated family members through digital technology was mentally and emotionally difficult.
Slewa-Younan et al. (2020)	An evaluation of a mental health literacy course for Arabic speaking religious and community leaders in Australia: effects on posttraumatic stress disorder related knowledge, attitudes and help-seeking	Uncontrolled, pre-post intervention design utilizing a survey questionnaire.	Mental health intervention: Key aspects of mental health literacy, help-seeking intentions and levels of general psychological distress were assessed, by means of a self-report survey, pre-intervention, (immediately) post-intervention and 3 months following intervention	n = 33 Arabic-speaking refugees	Intervention was delivered in Arabic by experienced bilingual health educators and/or mental health clinicians. The program content, which was developed by the authors in partnership with the NSW Refugee Health Service, was designed to be culturally sensitive and to be interactive with group discussion encouraged	Improvements in most aspects of mental health literacy assessed were found immediately post-intervention and at follow-up, although only changes relating to stigmatizing attitudes were statistically significant. Additionally, a statistically significant decrease in participants’ levels of general psychological distress was observed immediately following the intervention, and this decrease was sustained at 3 months follow-up
Walker et al. (2015)	Social Connectedness and mobile phone use among refugee women in Australia	Mixed methods design utilizing questionnaires and interviews	Pilot Project	n = 111 refugee women 19 years and older from 3 countries (Sudan, Afghanistan, Burma)	Potential participants were invited by Afghan, Burmese, and Sudanese community leaders to an information session, where the study was explained and invitations to participate was extended	Free-call phones and peer support training enables personal relationship to be formed, to deepen and provide emotional, informational and practical assistance that was of great value to them and enhanced their quality of life