Access to Health-Related Information, Health Services, and Welfare Services among South and Southeast Asian Immigrants in Japan: A Qualitative Study

Sadatoshi Matsuoka, Madhu Kharel, Kyoko Koto-Shimada (), Maiko Hashimoto, Hiroyuki Kiyohara, Azusa Iwamoto, Mika Nishihara and Masami Fujita
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Sadatoshi Matsuoka: Bureau of International Health Cooperation, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, 1-21-1 Toyama, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan
Madhu Kharel: Department of Community and Global Health, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan
Kyoko Koto-Shimada: Bureau of International Health Cooperation, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, 1-21-1 Toyama, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan
Maiko Hashimoto: Global Health Policy Division, International Cooperation Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2-2-1 Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8919, Japan
Hiroyuki Kiyohara: Bureau of International Health Cooperation, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, 1-21-1 Toyama, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan
Azusa Iwamoto: Bureau of International Health Cooperation, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, 1-21-1 Toyama, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan
Mika Nishihara: Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki University, 1-7-1 Sakamoto, Nagasaki 852-8521, Japan
Masami Fujita: Bureau of International Health Cooperation, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, 1-21-1 Toyama, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8655, Japan

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 19, 1-12

Abstract: Migrants face several challenges in their daily lives in the host country due to limited knowledge about the language, culture, and social system of the host country. Their vulnerability increases in a time of crisis. During the COVID-19 pandemic, migrant communities were severely affected. Evidence on migrants’ access to COVID-19-related information and services is limited. We conducted a qualitative, descriptive study among migrants from Vietnam, Myanmar, and Nepal living in Japan to explore the barriers and promoting factors for their access to health-related information, health services, and welfare services during the first wave of COVID-19. We used a thematic analysis to identify key themes according to the study’s objectives. Further, these themes were assessed using an adapted version of the ecological model. The migrants mainly relied on the information available on social networking sites and were not aware of formal sources of information. Language was a major barrier, followed by cognitive bottlenecks and time constraints for migrants accessing health-related information and services. Social media, short-form information provided using their native language or plain Japanese and illustrations, and supportive people around could help them to access health-related information and services. The findings from this study demonstrate how migrants can represent a vulnerable group in a host country, even more so in a time of crisis.

Keywords: COVID-19; migrant health; access; health-related information; health services; welfare services (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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