Primary Health Care: Experiences of Preschoolers in Refugee and Asylum Seeking Families
Author(s): O. Wahoush
Study objectives are to explore and describe refugee and refugee claimant mothers' experiences when their preschool child has an acute, minor episodic illness and to explore primary care provider perspectives. This qualitative study uses a mixed methods approach. The results of the research demonstrate that very low income and food insecurity affect one third of these families. Mothers access health information from a wide range of sources and use electronic sources more than reported for Canadians. Delays in accessing health care relate to fear about child services, possible negative effects on migration status and costs. Almost all mothers have identified a nurse by name most often a public heath nurse or a nurse practitioner at a community health centre. However, the research shows that primary care providers rarely know who among their clients is a refugee and have very little preparation for working with ethno-racially diverse populations.