Migration Challenges and Their Impact on the Primary Healthcare System—A Qualitative Research
In 2020 it is estimated that 281 million people were international migrants. Migrants constitute a potentially vulnerable population in terms of facing discrimination, poor living and housing conditions, and insufficient access to healthcare services. Due to the armed conflict in Ukraine in 2022, almost 10 million people crossed the Polish border within a year of the outbreak of the conflict. The objective of this paper is to present the use of primary healthcare services by people migrating from Ukraine to Poland and identify the barriers in access to healthcare by this group of persons. This study used a qualitative research technique in the form of an expert interview using individual in-depth interviews (IDI). The study group consisted of professionally active primary healthcare providers (doctors, nurses, and facility managers) in Poland. Research was carried out in the areas regarding the availability of healthcare, the potential threats and challenges, and possible system solutions. The results showed that the most common cause for doctor's appointments among migrants are respiratory infections, including COVID-19. Many cases were related to back pain, mainly resulting from the physical work of the patients. Additionally, some barriers to access and the provision of healthcare services for patients from Ukraine were identified. The majority (75%) of respondents indicated language as a significant barrier when providing services. Based on the study results, we recommend creating a dedicated website and telephone hotline for this group of persons as well as the use of traditional media to distribute information about access to healthcare services. It is also essential to focus on assistance for older people, since they may experience more difficulties with language and navigating the healthcare system.
Authors
- Weronika Ciećko (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1496-1924)
- Aleksandra Sierocka (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9056-9318)
- Łukasz Strzępek
- Oleh Lyubinets (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5036-6268)
- Daria Schneider-Matyka (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0303-9504)
- Krzysztof Sośnicki (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8274-748X)
- Tomasz Banaś (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6656-2490)
- Michał Marczak (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6262-0529)
- Elżbieta Cipora (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7794-550X)
- Mateusz Kaczmarski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4498-7110)
- Olga Partyka (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6359-2902)
- Zofia Sienkiewicz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1727-9637)
- Grażyna Dykowska (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5644-627X)
- Remigiusz Kozłowski (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2781-5341)
- Ewa Bandurska
- Jarosław Drobnik (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5472-1485)
- Krzysztof Małecki (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8687-1119)
- Szymon Grochans (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0806-0564)
- Katarzyna Sygit (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7173-2266)
- Monika Pajewska (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7735-5219)
- Aleksandra Czerw (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6189-6678)
- Anna Maria Cybulska (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6912-287X)
- Elżbieta Grochans (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3679-7002)
- Piotr Pobrotyn (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9216-451X)
Institutions
- Danylo Halytsky Lviv National Medical University (UA)
- Cracow University of Technology (PL)
- Medical University of Warsaw (PL)
- Wroclaw Medical University (PL)
- Uniwersytecki Szpital Dziecięcy (PL)
- Narodowy Instytut Zdrowia Publicznego PZH – Państwowy Instytut Badawczy (PL)
- Jan Grodek State Vocational Academy in Sanok (PL)
- Medical University of Lodz (PL)
- Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski Krakow University (PL)
- The Maria Sklodowska-Curie National Research Institute of Oncology (PL)
- Poznań University of Technology (PL)
- Gdańsk Medical University (PL)
- Pomeranian Medical University (PL)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Healthcare
- Published
- 2024-08-12
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare12161607
- Citations
- 8
- Primary Topic
- Migration, Health and Trauma
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 5.11