Criteria for Locating Temporary Shelters for Refugees of  Conflicts: A Systematic Review

Reza  Ramazani; Abbas  Ostadtaghizadeh; Arezoo  Yari; Ahmad Ali  Hanafi-Bojd; Ahmad  Soltani; Shah Bakhti  Rostami; Ahad  Heydari

doi:10.18502/ijph.v51i4.9236

Reza Ramazani Department of Health in Emergencies and Disasters, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Abbas Ostadtaghizadeh Department of Health in Emergencies and Disasters, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Arezoo Yari Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran
Ahmad Ali Hanafi-Bojd Department of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Ahmad Soltani Iran-Helal Institute of Applied-Science and Technology, Red Crescent Society of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Tehran, Iran
Shah Bakhti Rostami Payam-e-Noor Alborz University, Karaj, Iran
Ahad Heydari Department of Health in Emergencies and Disasters, School of Medicine, Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences, Sanandaj, Iran

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/ijph.v51i4.9236

Keywords: Conflict; Locating; Refugees; Temporary shelters

Abstract

Background: We aimed to identify the indicators and criteria to locate temporary shelters for conflict refugees.

Methods: This systematic review evaluated the full-text of the related articles in international electronic databases, such as Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, Cochran, and Google Scholar from the beginning and without time limit to 1 June 2019. In addition, this search was based on a strategy developed by the researchers. The studies were selected regardless of their methods and two data extraction forms were used to extract the most relevant and important information.

Results: Among 10124 cases of primary documents, 38 articles were selected, and 25 articles were analyzed in full-text. Totally, 45 indicators were identified and classified into two main categories of physical and non-physical indicators with six subcategories of land ownership, host government, access to infrastructures, site safety, land characteristics, and economic, social, and cultural considerations.

Conclusion: The selection of temporary shelters for the conflict refugees requires the identification of all the specific influential factors not properly addressed. The final indicators obtained in our review could be incorporated into the development of the models required in this regard.