Perspectives of Middle Eastern Immigrant Parents Regarding Accessing Healthcare Services for Children During the COVID-19 Pandemic in London, Ontario
Abstract
Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, immigrants have been disproportionally affected and faced difficulties in accessing healthcare services. While it has been reported that the rate of pediatric healthcare utilization decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic, the reasons behind this decline are unclear. It has been suggested that immigrant children might be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions regarding accessing healthcare services. This study aims to understand the Middle Eastern immigrant parents’ perspectives regarding their access to healthcare services for their children in the London, Ontario, area during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods: This qualitative study was conducted with an interpretive description methodology and informed by the socio-ecological model. Seven participants were interviewed, and data were analyzed thematic analysis using NVivo (1.6.1).
Findings: Four main themes were generated: 1) Navigating Health Services: “Limited and Confusing”, 2) Being an Immigrant Made it Hard, 3) Less Intention of Utilizing Child Health Services, and 4) Limited/No Mental Health Utilization.
Conclusion: Educational plans for immigrants and healthcare providers, improving effective communication between immigrants and healthcare providers, transferring health information with culturally friendly sources, and collaboration between schools and health services may aid immigrants to have better access to child healthcare services, especially during public health emergencies like a pandemic.