This study, funded as part of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Systems for Action research program, explored opportunities to strengthen a systems alignment approach to the refugee resettlement process in Virginia. Structural barriers in housing, healthcare, employment, and education can impede the effectiveness of resettlement and integration efforts. The current consultation process to coordinate refugee arrival and resettlement inadequately addresses these barriers while also failing to meaningfully include representatives from the medical, social, public health, and community sectors. The research team at American Institutes for Research (AIR) identified modalities for fortifying the systems alignment of the resettlement process and created a working group to address resettlement barriers. They examined existing gaps in the operations of the Virginia Community Capacity Initiatives Consultations and incorporated the voices of local refugees and refugee-leg organizations within medical, social, and public health systems. The team assessed the procedural, logistical, and budgetary feasibility of a systems alignment approach through three meetings of the working group and a feasibility assessment survey. AIR created an implementation guide that provides practical recommendations for building a working group, identifying and addressing structural barriers, as well as strategies for aligning systems in resettlement services.

This one-year pilot study was completed in partnership with the American Institutes for Research, Virginia Department of Social Services, Virginia Department of Health, and the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services.

Principal Investigators: 
Maliha Ali, DrPH, MPH, MBBS
Senior Researcher, American Institutes for Research


Co-Investigators:
Trenita Childers, PhD
Senior Researcher, American Institutes for Research

Danielle Agraviador, MPH
Researcher, American Institutes for Research

Charlene Nguyen, BSc
Research Associate, American Institutes for Research

Project Details:

Year: 2024
Funding Amount: $99,976
Status: Inactive