Skip to main content

The Health of Nepali Migrants in India: A Qualitative Study of Lifestyles and Risks.

Regmi, P., van Teijlingen, E., Mahato, P., Aryal, N., Jadhav, N., Simkhada, P., Zahiruddin, Q.S. and Gaidhane, A., 2019. The Health of Nepali Migrants in India: A Qualitative Study of Lifestyles and Risks. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16 (19), 3655.

Full text available as:

[img]
Preview
PDF (OPEN ACCESS ARTICLE)
Health of Nepali Migrants in India_Published Version.pdf - Published Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution.

668kB

DOI: 10.3390/ijerph16193655

Abstract

Background: Most health research on Nepali migrant workers in India is on sexual health, whilst work, lifestyle and health care access issues are under-researched. Methods: The qualitative study was carried out in two cities of Maharashtra State in 2017. Twelve focus group discussions (FGDs) and five in-depth interviews were conducted with Nepali male and female migrant workers. Similarly, eight interviews were conducted with stakeholders, mostly representatives of organisations working for Nepali migrants in India using social capital as a theoretical foundation. Results: Five main themes emerged from the analysis: (i) accommodation; (ii) lifestyle, networking and risk-taking behaviours; (iii) work environment; (iv) support from local organisations; and (v) health service utilisation. Lack of basic amenities in accommodation, work-related hazards such as lack of safety measures at work or safety training, reluctance of employers to organise treatment for work-related accidents, occupational health issues such as long working hours, high workload, no/limited free time, discrimination by co-workers were identified as key problems. Nepali migrants have limited access to health care facilities due to their inability to prove their identity. Health system of India also discriminates as some treatment is restricted to Indian nationals. The strength of this study is the depth it offers, its limitations includes a lack of generalizability, the latter is a generic issue in such qualitative research. Conclusion: This study suggests risks to Nepali migrant workers’ health in India range from accommodation to workplace, and from their own precarious lifestyle habit to limited access to health care facilities.

Item Type:Article
ISSN:1660-4601
Uncontrolled Keywords:Migration; lifestyle; pre-departure training; Nepali migrants; risk behaviour
Group:Faculty of Health & Social Sciences
ID Code:32822
Deposited By: Symplectic RT2
Deposited On:30 Sep 2019 08:57
Last Modified:14 Mar 2022 14:18

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year

More statistics for this item...
Repository Staff Only -