Experiences of Health and Mental Health Services for Immigrant Mothers from the Northern Triangle of Central America

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the lived experiences of immigrant mothers from the Northern Triangle of Central America with access to health and mental health services in the Southern United States. The theory guiding this study is social constructivism developed by Lev Vygotsky in 1968, as it will seek to understand the greater contexts of the experiences of the participants, both currently, as well as the stories and experiences of their immigration journey. Central American immigrant mothers from the Northern Triangle face many types of traumatic events in their lives. These events began in their home country before the journey, and continues throughout the journey, into relocation into the United States. Studies into Central American immigrant mothers’ experiences are limited. This study specifically sought to understand common themes in their experiences with health and mental health services. The study also incorporated Latina mothers’ perceptions of health and mental health services in the immigrant communities where they reside. The study answered the following questions about how Latin American immigrant mothers experience health and mental health services, how health and mental health services are perceived by Central American immigrant communities, and what the health and mental health implications for living in a Central American immigrant community could be. This study is important because a lack of appropriate health and social service resources in communities could result in disparities for service provisions.