Abstract
This research investigated the influence of religious beliefs, as well as education, immigration status, and health insurance status, on the perceived access and willingness to use healthcare services by the Bronx Ghanaian Immigrant Muslim Community (BGIMC) in New York City. A survey was administered to 156 male and female BGIMC members. Members with insurance were nine times more likely to report access to health care and almost seven times more likely to use healthcare services in the past 12 months. Immigration status, health insurance status, and education did not predict willingness to use health care for a broken arm nor for a severe fever but did predict willingness to use health care when experiencing dizziness. Understanding the social and religious factors related to the use of healthcare services should lead to tailored health insurance and access initiatives for the BGIMC and serve as a model for other immigrant communities in the USA.
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Acknowledgments
An approval for this research was obtained from Walden University’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) prior to data collection. Permission to conduct research was also obtained from the BGIMC’s board members.
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The views expressed are solely those of the authors and do not reflect the official policy or position of the US Army, US Navy, US Air Force, the Department of Defense, or the US Government.
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An informed consent form was developed and read by participants before engaging in the study. Confidentiality of participants’ identities was ensured throughout the research process. Each respondent was assigned a unique identification number (ID). The ID number was notated on the survey assigned to each respondent. There was no personally identifiable information on any documents associated with the research except for respondent ID reference document. This document linked each respondent ID to an actual respondent and was kept in a safe location.
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Musah, A.A., Hudak, R.P. Religious Barriers to Health for Members of the Bronx Ghanaian Immigrant Muslim Community in New York City. J Relig Health 55, 671–679 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-015-0091-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-015-0091-9