Delivery of Health Services to Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers

Abstract

Farmworkers are low-paid, uninsured employees in an extremely hazardous industry, and they provide an essential service for U.S. society. This review evaluates the delivery of health services to farmworkers. It describes the farmworker population in the United States, noting characteristics (e.g., migratory and immigration status) that limit their access to and utilization of health services. It describes the health services needs of this population, including occupational health, mental health, oral health, and chronic disease treatment. Cultural, structural, legal, financial, and geographic barriers to health services utilization are described. Existing research on health services utilization among farmworkers is discussed. Programs that have been developed to address the barriers to health services utilization among farmworkers are reviewed. Finally, research needed to improve knowledge of farmworker health services utilization is suggested. These research needs include formal evaluations of existing programs and basic research to characterize the health services utilization patterns of farmworkers.

Language Concordance, Interpersonal Care, and Diabetes Self-Care in Rural Latino Patients

“…[22][23][24] Due to their predominantly agricultural and mostly seasonal employment as well as other contextual circumstances, they have unique health care needs and face unique barriers in accessing health services. 20,32 Thus, the effect of language concordance may be particularly important for improving health for this subgroup of Latinos.…”

“…Latino populations are heterogeneous with respect to factors such as socioeconomic status, health insurance status, and country of origin. 20,21 The results of studies about language concordance have not been validated in LEP Latinos receiving care in rural communities, a growing segment of the Latino population in the US that may benefit in unique ways from having language-concordant providers. [22][23][24] The purpose of this study is to determine the association among patient-provider language concordance, patient ratings of IPC and participation in diabetes self-care activities for Latinos with diabetes receiving care in rural community health centers.…”

Living the Chilean dream? Bolivian migrants’ incorporation in the space of economic citizenship

“…Arcury and Quandt, 2007;Das et al, 2001;Holmes, 2013) [T]he subsample of Bolivians is that which presents the highest levels of lack of information with regards to legal matters … Moreover, it is the subsample with the highest proportion of low wages (below US$275), and which has the highest levels of both lack of contract, and concentration in unskilled employment.…”

A Comparison of Methods for Capturing Patient Preferences for Delivery of Mental Health Services to Low-Income Hispanics Engaged in Primary Care

“…[3] Poverty and minority status have been found to be associated with an increased likelihood for psychological stress (e.g., from discrimination, fear of unemployment or underemployment) and mental health problems, [3][4][5] and decreased likelihood of receiving treatment. [6][7][8] Federally-qualified health centers (FQHCs) provide an essential safety net for many underserved populations in the US; [9] they also face a number of challenges in providing primary care, mental health, and public health services responsive to their patients-i.e., patient-centered care.…”

“…In order to address the mental health needs of a population, patients' (or clients') needs must be identified and appropriate treatment offered and accepted. Patient preferences (e.g., language, cultural competency, less-stigmatizing locations) strongly affect whether patients see the providers who can identify them as having a need for mental health services, [3,4] and their preferences influence whether they get the care they need-both in terms of access and adherence. [2-4, 13, 14] There are a number of methodologies used to elicit patient preferences.…”