Self-Directed Female Migration in Ghana: Health and Wellness of Elderly Family Caregivers Left Behind. An Ethnographic Study

Solina Richter, Kimberly Jarvis, Vida N. Yakong, Patience Aniteye and Helen Vallianatos
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Solina Richter: Faculty of Nursing, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9, Canada
Kimberly Jarvis: Faculty of Nursing, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL A1C 5S7, Canada
Vida N. Yakong: School of Allied Health Sciences, University for Development Studies, Tamale 1350, Ghana
Patience Aniteye: School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of Ghana, Accra LG 25, Ghana
Helen Vallianatos: Department of Anthropology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 1C9, Canada

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 21, 1-9

Abstract: Driven by the global economic crisis, families are developing strategies for survival, including self-directed female migration. Female migration has negative and positive impacts on families in rural areas. The purpose of the project was to explore the health and wellness experiences of elderly family caregivers who have female family members who have migrated to improve the status of their families. In this focused ethnographic study, we interviewed elderly family members who had a female family member who migrated outside their community for employment. Participants were enrolled from northern Ghanaian communities known to be economically disadvantaged in comparison to their southern counterparts. All interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and translated into English. Data were analyzed based on thematic content. Majors themes that emerged were reasons for children leaving their families; physical, emotional, and spiritual health; and social and economic struggles. Challenges of family care work undertaken by the elderly in families with emigrated female kin strongly also emerged as a theme. New contextual knowledge was developed about the impact of self-directed female migration on the health and wellness of elderly family caregivers. The information is valuable for the development of culturally appropriate social support and health practices for female migrants and their families.

Keywords: female; migrants; struggles; challenges; left behind; elderly family (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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