Healthcare barriers for migrants

According to the results of the Population and Family Planning Survey conducted on April 1, 2022, by the General Statistics Office, the largest migration flow in our country is from urban to urban areas, accounting for 44.6% of all migration flows nationwide.

At the Workshop on Migration and Internal Migrant Health organized by the Population Department of the Ministry of Health on September 24th, Mr. Le Thanh Dung, Director of the Population Department, stated that Vietnam's population is currently 100.3 million people, of which the urban population accounts for 38.13%.

Mr. Le Thanh Dung delivered a speech at the seminar.

Vietnam is currently experiencing a demographic dividend with 67.7 million people of working age, accounting for 67.4% of the total population. Urbanization, industrialization, modernization, and a large working-age population have brought significant advantages to the country's socio -economic development and will undoubtedly have a major impact on migration flows within Vietnam.

According to the results of the Population and Family Planning Survey conducted on April 1, 2022, by the General Statistics Office, the largest migration flow in our country is from urban to urban areas, accounting for 44.6% of all migration flows nationwide.

The areas with the highest emigration rates are the Mekong Delta and the Northern Midlands and Mountains. The areas attracting the most migrants are the Southeast and the Red River Delta.

Provinces with high emigration rates include: Lang Son, Soc Trang, Tra Vinh, Ca Mau, and Bac Lieu. Provinces and cities with high immigration rates include: Bac Ninh , Binh Duong, Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City, Thua Thien Hue, and Long An.

The highest proportion of migrants is in the 20-24 age group for both men and women. This is followed by those in the 25-29 age group and the 15-19 age group. The main reasons for migration are employment (54.5%), family/housewarming (15.5%), and education (16%).

The feminization trend in migration has been observed over the past several years. In 2022, female migrants accounted for 53.2%. The proportion of female migrants is higher than that of male migrants in most migration flows, except for rural-urban migration, where the proportion of male migrants is 3.4 percentage points higher than that of female migrants.

Regarding the health of migrants, the 2015 National Internal Migration Survey results showed that 60% of migrants surveyed reported having normal health, and two-thirds (70.2%) had health insurance. The majority of migrants (63%) paid for their most recent illness/disease themselves; over 70% of migrants used public health services.

The rate of contraceptive use among migrant women (37.7%) is lower than among non-migrant women (58.6%). The rate of alcohol consumption among migrants is higher than among non-migrants. These habits are not only harmful to health but also incompatible with the work environment.

The 2019 report on the health status of migrants in Vietnam by the International Organization for Migration, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Ministry of Health also pointed out barriers and difficulties related to accessing healthcare services, such as a lack of knowledge about health insurance benefits, a lack of public health communication programs, and insufficient stakeholder participation.

Furthermore, studies both domestically and internationally have shown that migrants are among the most vulnerable population groups in public health emergencies (the recent Covid-19 pandemic is one example).

Migrants face numerous challenges such as restrictions on movement, reduced wages, job losses, risks, delays, and disruptions in healthcare.

Migration offers opportunities for education, employment, income, technology transfer, cultural exchange, and fosters cooperation between places of origin and destination.

Migration is inevitable and a driving force of development. However, migration also creates difficulties and challenges for both places of origin and destination; migrants belong to vulnerable populations and face difficulties and challenges in accessing social services.

At the workshop, Mr. Le Thanh Dung, Director of the Population Department (Ministry of Health) and member of the National Steering Committee on Population and Development, stated that migration is inevitable and a driving force of development. Migration brings opportunities in education, employment, income, technology transfer, cultural exchange, and promotes cooperation between places of origin and destination.

"However, migration also creates difficulties and challenges for both the places of origin and destination. Migrants belong to vulnerable population groups and face difficulties and challenges in accessing social services," Mr. Le Thanh Dung analyzed.

According to Mr. Vu Dinh Huy, representative of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Vietnam, internal migrants currently face many health problems. For informal migrants, the situation is often more difficult due to living conditions, working conditions, working hours, and the lack of oversight of their work.

On the other hand, the lifestyle trends of this migrant group are often unhealthy, such as: drinking alcohol, smoking, eating unhygienic food; and they are highly susceptible to both infectious and non-infectious diseases.

"The ability of this migrant group to access healthcare services is limited due to the lack of health insurance cards, or due to other social factors such as long working hours preventing them from going to the doctor, lack of family support, low income, etc.," said Mr. Vu Dinh Huy.

Regarding solutions to support the health of internally displaced persons, Mr. Vu Dinh Huy suggested that measures are needed to provide health knowledge such as guidebooks, enhance communication and education; and strengthen the socio-medical care network, such as providing housing, education, hygiene, and health insurance coverage.

At the same time, develop policies and regulations on occupational safety, working conditions, and primary healthcare facilities within the company, and conduct regular health check-ups…

Source: https://baodautu.vn/rao-can-cham-care-health-with-people-residents-d225726.html