Migration and health

Although there has been a large body of research looking at migrant health issues, there is little understanding of migrant health in Australia due to limited research. Australia is among the top migration countries, where about half of the population is a first- or second-generation migrant, and where more than quarter of the labour force consists of migrants. This study adds to our understanding of migrant health in Australia by looking at the health of migrants upon their arrival in the destination and at the change in their health status in the next 6-18 months since migration. The study uses two waves of second Longitudinal Study of Immigrants in Australia, including about 3000 migrants and 1000 of their partners. The preliminary findings show that migrants entering the country on humanitarian visas report disproportionately worse health outcomes than other migrants and their health is more likely to change over time.

Although immigrant women are less likely to smoke compared to Non-hispanic whites and U.S. natives born of same ethnic origin, previous studies indicate that acculturation is positively associated with maternal smoking during pregnancy. The increase in maternal smoking during pregnancy with acculturation is often attributed to the downward trajectory within the segmented assimilation framework. However, theoretical frameworks (e.g., acculturation) that emphasize cultural explanations have used a “zero-sum game” approach which does not provide a comprehensive understanding of complex acculturative processes of the immigrant experience. To incorporate the structural factors in the context of reception in understanding maternal smoking during pregnancy of Mexican-origin women in the United States, we draw from the emerging scholarship on how residential segregation affects health. Our preliminary results support the protective effect of immigrant enclaves for Mexican foreign-born women. On the other hand, interaction with non-Hispanic white at the contextual level is associated with the increased odd of maternal smoking during pregnancy.

According to census of India (2011) almost 30 per cent population lived in urban cities whereas mass majority 70 per cent are residing in rural areas. One side Metropolitan cities become the hub of economic activity or opportunity on the other side rural population; have no other alternative choice except farming. For livelihood strategy so many people daily migrants rural to urban cities, it is one of the most dominant streams of internal migration in India. Internal labour migration has become an important livelihood strategy for many poor groups across India. However, this segment of the population faces exclusion from the various mainstream programs such as education, health, adequate living conditions, minimum wages and freedom from exploitation and harassment. This increases the vulnerabilities of migrants and lead to their poor health status which has significant public health implications.
This paper is attempted to examine of living, working and health aspect of migrants cycle rickshaw pullers in Delhi. They are the most important part of transport service provider of local population in Delhi. This segment of the population faces exclusion from the various mainstream programs such as education, health, adequate living conditions, minimum wages and freedom from exploitation and harassment.

While the number of parents migrating to seek jobs elsewhere leaving young children in the care of others has been common, little is known about the positive or negative consequences for children. This study uses both bivariate and multivariate analyses to examine the impact of parental out-migration on the health of children left behind. Data were derived from “Migration and Health, Kanchanaburi Demographic Surveillance System (KDSS), 2007, Thailand”. A total of 11,241 children were the study population.

The study found that 14.5% of children had either one or both migrant parents in the Kanchanaburi study area. One out of four children (25%) had an incidence of illness. A significantly higher percentage of children whose mother, father or both had migrated had an illness compared to those whose parent(s) were not migrants. Several individual, household, and community factors were significantly associated with children’s health. Multivariate analysis suggests that parental out-migration in poor households is independently associated with a higher likelihood of an illness. The findings also suggest that strategies to alleviate the negative impact of parental migration as well as to maintain and enhance the well-being of families, especially among the children left behind in poor households, are warranted.

Awareness about the innovation of health seeking behaviour leads adoption/practice of particular techniques. India’s 69 per cent of the population living in the rural areas (Population Census of India, 2011) and still usage of better health facilities are out reach of the rural residents.
The present study was conducted in the Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh (UP). This region is one the backward regions of India and it is characterised by agricultural economy, lack of industries and natural resources. According to the Population Census of India (2001) highest rural out-migrants rates were in UP. The highest rural out-migration rates was from Bundelkhand regions of UP. We have interviewed 360 farmers from six villages in two districts equally.
Study shows that migrant household was more health conscious and better aware about the health seeking mechanisms than non-migrant household. Member of the migrant household have better socio-economic status and more exposure about the urban life style due to migration. Migrant households have not faith in the herbal and religious practice for treatment. Most of the migrant households have used private hospital for the treatment as they have better economic conditions.

After having been a country of emigration for a long time, Italy has become one of the countries with the greatest foreign presence in Europe. The rapid increase in the number of foreign women – i.e. feminization process - and the fact that free health care is provided regardless of legal status, makes Italy an interesting case to study reproductive, maternal and perinatal health of foreign women. For our analyses we use Certificates of Healthcare at Delivery (CeDAPs), a nationwide system that cover births that have occurred in Italy since 2002. The data allowed us to identify differences between the various degrees of structural integration of foreign population. First results show that inequalities in perinatal outcomes between Italian and foreign women have persisted; especially for the less stable population.

Using data from the British Millennium Cohort Study (MCS), we examine the relationship between family structure and overweight/obesity in early childhood, exploring whether and how it varies both by family structure and maternal nativity status. Because the resources available to different family types, and the form and function of the family, are likely to vary across different nativity groups, a closer examination of heterogeneous effects by mother’s nativity status may shed light on the underlying processes that drive gaps in well-being by family structure. First generation migrants are often married but they tend also to be disadvantaged socio-economically. Nonetheless, migrants and their children also tend to have better health outcomes. Preliminary findings suggest that the predominant explanations for child health gaps by family structure may be less pertinent for first and second generation migrant mothers who are less able to use their marital status to attain greater or higher quality resources.

This study argues that urban health issues that consider the poor and the migrants as distinct groups in the urban context need not necessarily reflect accurate trends and patterns. Another concern is whether being urban poor as well as migrant is a double disadvantage in the utilization of safe delivery care service? Public health literature has paid little attention to the trends and factors that affect maternal and child health (MCH) among the migrants and the poor in urban India. Using data from the National Family Health Survey, 1992-93, 1998-99 and 2005-06, this study grouped the household wealth and migration status into four distinct categories: poor-migrant, poor-non migrant, non poor-migrant, non poor-non migrant. The present study identifies two distinct groups in terms of MCH care utilization in urban India – one for poor-migrant and one for non poor-non migrants. While poor-migrant women and their children were most vulnerable, non poor-non migrant women and children were the highest users of safe delivery care. This study reiterates the inequality that underlies the utilization of maternal healthcare services not only by the urban poor but also by poor-migrant women, who deserve special attention.

In South Africa, many circular migrants return to their places of origin when ill. To estimate the contribution the internal migrants have made to excess mortality in a rural sub-district population, we computed AIDS and TB cause-deleted life expectancy and crude death rates by gender and migration status between 1994 and 2006. The annualised crude death rate almost tripled from 5∙39 to 15∙10 per 1000 over the years 1994-2006. This reduced life expectancy from 67∙7 to 47∙0 years. AIDS and TB in returning migrants contributed to 44∙4% of the overall loss in life expectancy with a notable disparity by gender: 62∙3% for males and 34∙2% for females. The contribution of AIDS and TB in returned migrants to the increase in crude death rate was 78∙7% for males and 44∙4% for females. In a typical South African setting dependent on labour migration for rural livelihoods, the contribution of returned migrants, many infected with AIDS and TB, to the burden of disease is high. Returned male migrants are more affected by AIDS and TB than female migrants and non-migrant males and females. Care and referral systems must bridge long distances and span different settlement types to maintain continuity of health care.

Event history analyses make the explicit assumption of independence between censoring and event. Under this hypothesis right censoring due to survey time does not create a selection bias. However, when censoring is not independent from the event of interest (e.g. migration in relation to death) then results suffer from potential bias. This paper presents a model to deal with non-independent right- as well as left-censoring, when the same determinants may cause in-migration, out-migration and mortality. The model follows the rationale of two-stage regression models controlling for selection biases to control for both observed and unobserved heterogeneity in migration. The method is applied on longitudinal adult mortality data collected by the APHRC Nairobi Urban Health and Demographic Surveillance System (NUHDSS), situated in two Nairobi slums – Korogocho and Viwandani – where circular migration is high. Results confirm selection for both out- and in-migration. The method produces higher adult mortality rates than raw estimates. After controlling for migration effect, median age at death from age 15 would be 46 year old (against gross estimate of 70) for females, and 52 (against 70) for males. Migration is most likely an important strategy adopted by slum-dwellers to avoid health risks attached to slum environment.