Transnasjonale helsepraksiser. Bruk av helsetjenester blant polske arbeidsinnvandrere i Norge

Abstract

Transnational Health Practices Among Polish Labor Migrants in NorwayThe article discusses the use of health-care services among Polish labor migrants in Norway. We apply theories of patient–physician relationship, trust, and transnationalism to analyze a material of qualitative in-depth interviews with eleven Polish labor migrants about their health practices. The material demonstrates how and why many Polish labor migrants evaluate Norwegian primary health care negatively. Their main reason for doing so is the non-paternalistic doctor–patient relationship. They therefore supplement Norwegian health services with health services available in their home country. However, the labor migrants tend to evaluate the Norwegian health system more favorably as time passes. In total, the Poles establish creative, reflexive, competent, and dynamic health practices that go beyond national state borders and combine elements of two health-care systems. We argue that these practices enable migrants to enhance the total quality of their health care.

Migration health research in Norway: a scoping review

“…Yet, migrants from Eastern Europe and other European countries are the largest migrant groups in Norway, often immigrating as labour migrants or due to family reunification [2]. We found few studies on, for instance, Polish labour migrants, although many of them indeed have health problems and can experience significant barriers to accessing health care [4,42,54–58]. Health of labour migrants, especially those from less affluent countries, who often work in sectors with high exposure to occupational hazards and have jobs characterized by poor working conditions and limited legal rights [55,57–59], should be a priority in future research on migrant health.…”

Which doctors do we trust? A vignette experiment of how gender and ethnicity influence trust

“…Conflicting ideas regarding the role of the physician might also influence trust in GPs (Småland Goth and Berg, 2011). For example, Stachowski and Rye (2017) find that Polish labour migrants have lower confidence in the Norwegian GP system and continue to use the Polish health-care system even after migrating. Furthermore, as non-Western minorities have more trust in the non-Western GPs, the findings can contribute to partly explaining why minority GPs have significantly more minority patients, as found by Diaz et al.…”