Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #110081

Wendy Sword, RN, PhD, School of Nursing HSc 3N25, McMaster University, 1200 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON L8N 3Z5, Canada, 905-525-9140, sword@mcmaster.ca, Susan Watt, DSW, RSW, School of Social Work, McMaster University, 1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON L8S 4M4, Canada, and Paul Krueger, PhD, Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, McMaster University, 1200 Main Street West, Hamilton, ON L8N 3Z5, Canada.

Shortened lengths of postpartum stay in hospital have raised concern about the potential for negative health outcomes, especially in the absence of appropriate follow-up care.1 Immigrant women may be particularly vulnerable to poor outcomes given cultural, linguistic, and socioeconomic factors that impact on their postpartum experiences.1,2 They also may have difficulty getting the care they need. A cross-sectional survey conducted in Ontario, Canada examined postpartum health outcomes and service use in the first 4 weeks following hospital discharge. 31.4% of the 1250 women that agreed to participate and completed a questionnaire in hospital were born outside of Canada. 71.2% (n=890) of the sample participated in a structured telephone interview at 4 weeks post discharge. Compared to women born in Canada, immigrant women were significantly more likely to report poorer overall health at 4 weeks and have probable postpartum depression. There were no significant differences in self-identified need for care for a health problem, but immigrant women were more likely to report a need for financial assistance. There also were no differences in ability to get care for a health concern, but immigrant women were significantly more likely to be unable to get household help, reassurance/support, and financial assistance. These findings highlight the importance of public health nurses (1) attending to the postpartum health needs of immigrant women, (2) educating them about the importance of getting care for mental health concerns, and (3) ensuring they are linked to appropriate community services. Public health nurses are strategically placed to optimize health outcomes for such vulnerable groups. 1. Katz D, Gagnon AJ. Evidence of adequacy of postpartum care for immigrant women. Canadian Journal of Nursing Research 2002;34:71-81. 2. Kinnon D. Canadian research on immigration and health. Ottawa: Health Canada; 1999.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, the participant will be able to

• Articulate why postpartum health and ability to get care might differ for immigrant women
• Describe the discrepancies in health and ability to get care between immigrant and non-immigrant women as found in a large Canadian study
• Describe the role of public health nurses in optimizing health outcomes for immigrant women

Keywords: Immigrant Women, Maternal Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.