PRENATAL HEALTHCARE AMONG IMMIGRANT MOTHERS IN CANADA: AN EXPLORATION OF BARRIERS TO ADEQUATE AND CULTURALLY COMPETENT CARE
Date
2023-08-10
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
ORCID
Type
Thesis
Degree Level
Masters
Abstract
Immigrants in Canada make up more than 20% of the population and are quite diverse, many migrating under the economic category to amplify economic development (Statistics Canada, 2017a). Despite the growing number of immigrants in the country, there remain gaps in culturally competent and adequate care for immigrant mothers who live in Canada. This thesis examined prenatal care barriers experienced by immigrant mothers in Canada.
First, a systematic scoping review was undertaken. A total of 17 studies were included and analyzed. Cultural and institutional factors affected mothers’ access to and perception of prenatal care in the Canadian healthcare system. Second, an online survey was conducted with immigrant women in Saskatchewan who had received prenatal care within the past 3 years (N=70) between September 2021 and March 2022. This included participants from Africa (n=56), Asia (n=9), Europe (n=2), North America (n=2), and South America (n=1). 15.71% of the participants were pregnant when completing the survey. Factors such as transportation, no health problems, affordability of prenatal care, and social support increased participants’ access to prenatal care, while work schedules and COVID-19 had the opposite effect.
Description
Keywords
Prenatal, Immigrant, Women, Canada, Scoping review, Survey
Prenatal care, Immigration, Immigration status, Immigrant women barrier, Barriers to
prenatal care, Saskatchewan, health care quality, COVID-19.
Citation
Degree
Master of Public Health (M.P.H.)
Department
School of Public Health
Program
Public Health