Health perceptions among victims in post-accord Colombia: Focus groups in a province affected by the armed conflict.

Abstract

The peace agreement with the Colombian guerrilla group Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia-Ejército del Pueblo represented an opportunity for peacebuilding and victims' reparation, rather than the end of the internal armed conflict. In this context, this study aimed to uncover the consequences of conflict on victims' health and on health service provision, and their perceived health status during the post-accord stage in the Meta region, located in the country's eastern plains. Historically, this region has been one of the territories most affected by the presence of conflict-related groups and armed confrontations. Through focus groups, this research explored the health perceptions and experiences of victims of armed conflict. Ten focus groups were conducted with men and women, victims of the armed-conflict, in four municipalities with different degrees of armed conflict intensity. The focus group transcripts were coded using NVivo. The results show that the way women have experienced conflict and the effects of conflict on mental health in general for men, women, and children were recurrent themes in the dialogue of victims. Likewise, it highlights the need to understand the barriers that the current health model imposes on the right to health itself. From the victim's perspective, they experience stigmatization, discrimination, and revictimization when accessing health services. These barriers co-occur along with structural limitations of the health system that affect the general population.