Lost in Translation: Reproductive Health Care Experiences of Somali Bantu Women in Hartford, Connecticut
Open accessAbstract
Introduction: Reproductive health problems are the leading cause of women's morbidity and mortality worldwide. In the United States, officially sponsored refugee women continue to face challenges in accessing reproductive health programs despite having access to health insurance. Methods: The objective of this study was to explore the reproductive health experiences of 1 such population—Somali Bantu women in Connecticut—to identify potential barriers to care experienced by marginalized populations. The study was qualitative, consisting of key informant interviews, a focus group session, and a semistructured survey. Results: Although all the women in the study reported having access to reproductive health care services, they also reported having unmet health needs resulting from barriers to care that included ethnic distinction/language barriers, passive acceptance of incorrect care, cultural discordance in family planning services, patient‐provider sex discordance, and desire but limited scope for ownership in health care outcomes. The root cause of the various types of patient‐provider discordance was the lack of recognition that the Somali Bantu are distinct in culture, language, and solidarity from ethnic Somalis, resulting in Language Line translation services being conducted in a Somali language that the Somali Bantu women did not understand. Discussion: The results of the study primarily highlight the larger issue of information asymmetry within the health care system that, if left unaddressed, will persist as new vulnerable populations of refugees arrive in the United States.
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Language barriers have been shown to cause delays in other contexts.
“The extent to which language barriers lead to delays both inside and outside of the camps has not been studied, however language barriers have been shown to cause delays in other contexts.64–66”
From Mortality in Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh: historical, social, and political context (2019) · cites this paper as [64]
The Results section identifies language barriers as the most commonly reported problem in accessing care, and the Discussion links limited language skills to unmet needs. Neither section reports that language barriers caused delays, so the specific outcome attributed to this source is unsupported. (LLM, conf=0.78)
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- Authors
- Gurnah, K., Khoshnood, K., Bradley, E., & Yuan, C.
- Affiliations
- Community Health Center (US)
- Yale University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Gurnah, Khadija
- Venue
- Journal of Midwifery & Women's Health
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2011-05-31
- Volume
- 56
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 340-346
- ISSN
- 1526-9523 (ISSN-L)
- 1542-2011
- OpenAlex
- W2050946088
- Cited by
- 51
- References
- 19
- Citations by year
- 2025: 5 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 1 · 2016: 2 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 1 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 6.42
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Journal of Midwifery & Women s Health (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Yale University
- Yale School of Public Health, Yale University
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Cultural Competency in Health Care
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Migration, Health and Trauma
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Interpreting and Communication in Healthcare
- Keywords
- refugee women, reproductive health care, barriers to care, language barriers, family planning, patient-provider communication, information asymmetry, health care access, Hartford, Connecticut
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Attitude to Health, Communication Barriers, Connecticut, Cultural Characteristics, Female, Health Services Needs and Demand, Health Status, Humans, Socioeconomic Factors, Somalia, Nursing Methodology Research, Women's Health, Focus Groups, Vulnerable Populations, Young Adult
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