Voices of Parents and Pediatricians: Experiences of Chinese Immigrant Children in Seeking Pediatrics Health Care Services

BACKGROUND: Asian Americans are one of the fastest growing ethnic groups, but one whose health care experiences are less studied and understood as compared to those of other minority groups. Further, limited research has been done on children's access to health care and clinician's perspective on caring for these families.

OBJECTIVES: The project aims to identify barriers to effective care as perceived by Chinese immigrant families and their pediatricians and to provide insights on how health care services can be improved to meet the needs of Chinese immigrant children.

METHODS: Four focus groups were held with Chinese immigrant parents receiving medical care at a large community health center in NYC Chinatown. A separate focus group was held with the health center's pediatricians. Issues explored included barriers to seeking care, parental expectations and their health care experiences in the US.

RESULTS: Language difficulty, affordability, lack of health information, and long waiting time were identified as the major barriers. Limited understanding of the US healthcare system and previous experiences with China's health care system also affected the healthcare seeking behaviors of Chinese immigrant parents.

CONCLUSIONS: Findings support the need for targeted parental outreach efforts through community media, especially among the new arrivals. Providers should be educated and trained in alternative and complementary medicine to better negotiate a care plan that is congruent with the immigrant parents' expectations. The Patient-Centered Medical Home Care Model is proposed as a means to address health and social service needs for immigrant families.