Ukrainian Immigrants and the Demand for Health Care

To take care within multiculturalism is shown to be a challenge for nursing considering the worldwide situation of human mobility, and due to the presence of a large number of immigrants in Portugal. With the accomplishment of this research, we intend to identify:  needs for health cares felt by Ukrainian immigrants; influence of cultural and health believes in the search for medical cares by Ukrainian immigrants; access of culturally different people to their health services; contributes of nursing cares in the search for those cares.

To fulfil these purposes, we develop an exploratory study, descriptive with intramethod triangulation, through the application of a questionnaire to 12 Ukrainians living in the Oporto metropolitan area and also through a semi-structured interview to 11 of those people, bearing in mind the twelve domains of the Purnell Culture.

The results pointed out for prevailing difficulties in the medical access resulting from ineffective communication, due to linguistic barriers and/or to different interpretations and also from the disarticulation between the several immigrant support services, in association with not knowing the legislation that regulates the access, particularly of illegal immigrants. We also noticed that the access to medical care seems to be compromised because both immigrants and health professionals aren’t aware of the existing support structures for these situations, aggravated by Ukrainians health believes and costumes.

Therefore, based on this research it was possible to implement strategies for the promotion of health cares as far as immigrants are concerned, considering the diversity and vulnerability in the health access. Summing up, we hope to contribute to enlarge and consolidate these people knowledge on this field, aiming an inclusive and enlightening plan specifically directed to immigration and health cares.