Socio-familiar aspects of the immigrant population in Catalonia

Objectives: to acquire a better understanding of socio-familiar features of the immigrant population looked after in the pediatric offices in Catalonia.

Methodology: prospective, transversal and multicentric study. Population: children aged 6 months to 15 years, who had arrived to Catalonia less than one year before, and who were of low income countries' origin. Variables: sex, age, country of origin, blood relationship between the parents, date of migration and first visit to the medical office, main caregiver, complete/ non-complete family, home overcrowding index, religion and parents' education.

Results: one thousand two hundred and twenty-six patients were studied, 659 males (53.8%) and 567 females (46.2%). They had come from 47 countries, which were grouped into 9 different "origin" groups. Average age of the sample: 7.5 years. Average time between arrival to Catalonia and first visit to the doctor: 1 month. Main caregiver: mother or father in 96.9% of the cases. In 70.9% of the cases, the family was complete. Parents' blood relationship: 13.2% of the cases. The biggest home overcrowding index (IH > 2) was founded among Indian-Pakistan (49.7%), Maghreb (41.6%) and other Asian (41.8%) families. Family religion: Muslims (45.9%), Catholic (38.8%) and other Christian doctrines (10.5%). Five point five percent of parents and 16.4% of mothers had never gone to school.

Conclusions: in order to provide the best medical assistance to immigrants, it is necessary to have a good understanding of their cultural and social background.