Hispanic Mexican immigrants form a significant part of the US population and New York City in particular. Perhaps it is the reason why various stakeholders are trying to control the number of these migrants, with some even suggesting the construction of a wall along the US-Mexico border. Far from that, it is inevitable for individuals, regardless of their ethnic background to require healthcare services. However, the access may be limited by a number of barriers. This working paper investigates the healthcare risks (chronic diseases) of the Hispanic immigrants in New York City suburbs, studies concerning the subject, the barriers that hinder the population from accessing quality healthcare, as well as recommendations.
Background
According to Acevedo et al. (2007), the high immigration rate of Mexicans into New York City has resulted into Hispanic Mexicans being the largest ethnic minority in the city. Usually, the places where this group resides are densely populated. The Mexicans do not just settle in any place in the US rather; they prefer to live in neighborhoods where they can interact with people from their culture. Since the objective for getting into the US is finding better opportunities, it becomes necessary for them to live with their extended families or people from their ethnic background so that they converse in their native language, get links to jobs and ask for help. Popular places in New York City where most Hispanic Mexican immigrants reside include Jackson Heights, Crown Heights, Brooklyn’s Sunset Park, and Manhattan’s Spanish Harlem.
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It is also important to understand the meaning of chronic diseases before delving into the various studies that describe the health risks of the Hispanic Mexicans in New York City. According to Gany et al. (2014), chronic diseases are those conditions that last for more than three months. The most common chronic diseases include heart diseases, cancer, asthma, diabetes, and HIV/AIDS. Most of these diseases can be treated or managed when they are identified in their early stages. On the contrary, if they are identified in late stages, treatment or management becomes a challenge.
Literature Review
This section involves analysis of two primary sources; Perez-Escamilla et al. (2010) and Gany et al. (2014) studies. To begin with the Perez-Escamilla et al. (2010) study, the research examined 77 studies on the access of health care among Hispanic immigrants in the US. The two prominent databases used by the researchers were PubMed and ISI Web of Science. It is also important that the researchers used only current articles that had been published within ten years from the period the study was conducted (1999 and 2009). The objective was to ensure that the information was current and an accurate representation of the present trends. During the research, 43 PubMed articles as well as 71 Web of Science articles were identified. However, the researchers picked only the most relevant articles by skimming through the abstracts of each article. Perhaps it is also vital to mention that the study was qualitative because the researchers relied mainly on existing literature sources and presented a descriptive study.
To provide a highlight of the Perez-Escamilla et al. (2010) study, it investigates both the barriers to healthcare access and prevalence of chronic diseases among the Hispanic Mexican immigrants. In an attempt to organize the study logically, the researchers use thematic analysis. That means that the study is categorized into various sections that are distinct from each other. Thematic analysis also seems to be the best technique of analyzing a descriptive study.
Gany et al. (2014) study provides a background of the composition of the Mexican and the overall Hispanic population in the US, analyzes the healthcare needs of the population, the causes of the risk factors, the barriers to effective health care access and a discussion of the findings. Just like in the Perez-Camilla et al. (2010) study, the researchers use secondary sources to obtain information regarding the subject. The researchers also use PubMed and ISI Web of Science as the primary online sources. However, the researchers do not seek for a lot of articles like in the Perez-Camilla et al. (2010). Only about 15 studies are sought from which a few relevant ones are selected.
Specifically Gany et al. (2014) seem to suggest that the occupations of the immigrants contribute significantly to their exposure to chronic diseases. One of the prominent assertions is that most of the Hispanic Mexican immigrants work in industries that deal with hazardous chemicals and do not take the initiative of protecting themselves. The harmful chemicals are linked to cancer infection. The researchers also point out that the living conditions make most immigrants to engage in undesirable social behavior such as irresponsible sex and use of drugs hence increasing the probability of getting infected with HIV/AIDS.
The strength of the two studies is that their sources are credible and peer-reviewed. Secondly, the sources used are current and thus provide the existing conditions of the Hispanic Mexican immigrants. However, Gany et al. (2014) study seems to be the strongest. While Perez-Camilla et al. (2010) provide a general overview of the chronic conditions that the Hispanics in New York suffer from, Gany et al. (2014) delve into the specifics. Gany et al. also uses thematic analysis to provide an exhaustive study of the subject. The most evident weakness of both studies is that they do not use some quantitative sources to carry out the investigation. It would have been prudent for instance, to investigate the number of people in different healthcare centers that are infected with chronic diseases and compare the number to that of the natives.
Barriers to Healthcare Access
The first and most prominent barrier towards healthcare access by the immigrants is that a considerable number of them are undocumented citizens (Acevedo et al. 2007). That means that most of them fear being identified and deported. To avoid such plights, not many of them will visit healthcare centers readily. Secondly, most Hispanics are poor and depend on menial jobs to sustain their families. Healthcare costs especially for the uninsured is high. As already mentioned, since most of the immigrants are undocumented, they cannot get insurance because of the lack of identity documents. People will not bother about their conditions especially if the symptoms are not so evident. The third obstacle concerns language barrier. It becomes difficult for the immigrants to communicate with the native healthcare workers, a situation that may have an impact on the quality of services they receive. The last barrier is illiteracy. In fact, a lot of the Hispanics prefer jobs, which are often referred to as “off the book” because a significant number of them are uneducated. The illiteracy makes many of them not to understand the health risks at their places of work. As mentioned before, many of them do not wear protective gear at their places of work, a demonstration that they do not understand the health risks.
Recommendations
According to Brown (2012), since most of the risks are associated with ignorance, there is the need to conduct awareness among the population. The immigrants need to be taught about the health risks associated with the exposure to chemicals in various industries. Though the management of various industries have tried to provide protective gear for the workers, most of them do not wear the gear all the time. It will become necessary for the management of the firms to use other measures to enforce the rules.
References
Acevedo, G., González, M., Santiago, V., & Vargas-Ramos, C. (2007). The state of Latino health and mental health . Centro de Estudios Puertorriqueños, Hunter College (CUNY).
Brown, N. (2012). Health Care Access for Undocumented Hispanic Immigrants in New York City: Analysis and Policy Proposal.
Gany, F., Novo, P., Dobslaw, R., & Leng, J. (2014). Urban occupational health in the Mexican and Latino/Latina immigrant population: A literature review. Journal of immigrant and minority health , 16 (5), 846-855.
Pérez ‐ Escamilla, R., Garcia, J., & Song, D. (2010). Health care access among Hispanic immigrants:¿ Alguien está escuchando?[Is anybody listening?]. Annals of Anthropological Practice , 34 (1), 47-67.
