Seasonal Farmworkers Research Articles

HIV prevalence and related risk behaviours in female seasonal farm workers in Souss Massa Draa, Morocco: results from a cross-sectional survey using cluster-based sampling

ObjectivesTo determine prevalence of HIV and HIV-related behaviours in female seasonal farm workers (FSFWs) in two provinces of Souss Massa Draa (SMD) region in Morocco. SMD has a higher burden...

Prevalence and Determinants of Overweight and Obesity in Children and Adolescents from Migrant and Seasonal Farmworker Families in the United States-A Systematic Review and Qualitative Assessment.

Overweight and obesity (OW/OB) is a pressing health concern among migrant and seasonal farmworker (MSFW) families in the US. The limited number of previously reported research on MSFW families suggests that their unique sociodemographic characteristics and lifestyle predispose them to poor health outcomes including OW/OB. We aimed to synthesize and assess available data on the prevalence and modifiable health determinants of OW/OB in MSFW children and adolescents. Literature search, study selection, data extraction and synthesis, and qualitative assessment of selected studies were performed independently by two authors. Ten cross-sectional studies met the inclusion criteria: articles or dissertations investigating prevalence and association between health determinants and OW/OB in MSFW children and adolescents (<20 years) in the US. The prevalence of OW, OB, and OW/OB ranged from 10%–33%, 15%–37%, and 31%–73%, respectively. Children’s education, household food insecurity, parents’ weight status, parents’ distorted perception of their children’s weight status, and parents’ participation in the federal nutrition assistance program were significantly associated with the children’s and adolescents’ risk of OW/OB. Promotion of culturally relevant public health programs and implementation of a systematic health surveillance plan for MSFWs and their children should be emphasized to combat OW/OB among MSFW children and adolescents.

Investigation of brucellosis in a female agricultural population in Turkey

Much epidemiological information concerning brucellosis generally depends on the evaluation of hospital-based retrospective data. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and risk factors of brucellosis in female farmworkers in the south-eastern region of Turkey (GAP) in order to obtain a more representative analysis. Our representative community-based cross-sectional study was conducted during four months of 2013, in all nine GAP provinces. An optimum sample size was determined and blood samples were analysed from 707 reproductive-age female farmworkers using the Rose Bengal (RBT) and standard (SAT) agglutination tests. Sociodemographic information was collected during face-to-face interviews with consenting subjects. Crude odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were calculated, and chi-square analyses and logistic regression were performed. Employment as a seasonal farmworker and having had five or more pregnancies were the only risk factors found to be significant. This study implies much greater priority needs be given to the control, early diagnosis and treatment in this population.

Using "Policy Briefs" to Present Scientific Results of CBPR: Farmworkers in North Carolina.

Using scientific results to inform policy that improves health and well-being of vulnerable community members is essential to community-based participatory research (CBPR). We describe "policy briefs," a mechanism developed to apply the results of CBPR projects with migrant and seasonal farmworkers to policy changes. Policy briefs are two-page summaries of published research that address a single policy issue using language and graphics to make the science accessible to diverse audiences. Policy brief topics are selected by community advocates, based on collaborative research, and address a specific policy or regulation. Development is an iterative process of discussion with community representatives. Briefs have been used to provide information to advocates, state and national policymakers, and the public. Disseminating CBPR results to address policy is needed. Collaborating with community partners to produce policy briefs ensures that information about concerns and struggles reflects their priorities.

A Brief Report: Lessons Learned and Preliminary Findings of Progreso en Salud, an HIV Risk Reduction Intervention for Latina Seasonal Farmworkers.

Throughout the past decade, HIV rates in Florida—particularly South Florida, where many Latina seasonal farmworkers reside and work—have ranked among the highest in the nation. In this brief report, we delineate important lessons learned and preliminary findings from the implementation of the HIV prevention intervention Progreso en Salud (Progress in Health). Among the 114 Latina seasonal farmworker participants, there were significant increases from baseline to 6-month follow-up in the percentages of overall condom use, HIV testing, HIV/AIDS-related communications with friends, HIV knowledge, condom use self-efficacy, and correct use of condoms. Lessons learned from this study can be used to inform future HIV intervention strategies to improve the adoption and maintenance of HIV risk reduction behaviors among high-risk Latina seasonal workers and other high-risk underserved populations. Future research is needed to support our findings.

Chronic conditions and barriers to care: exploring the health of migrant and seasonal farmworkers in Indiana

Purpose Migrant and seasonal farmworkers (MSFWs) have many health challenges due to the nature of their work, low wages, living conditions, mobility, and lack of health insurance. The purpose of this paper is to assess the availability of health services, barriers to accessing health care, and the prevalence of chronic conditions among MSFWs in Indiana. Design/methodology/approach A site-based convenience sample of MSFWs aged 14 years and older completed a cross-sectional survey. A total of 97 participants who currently or previously identified as farmworkers completed the questionnaire. Findings Almost one-third of the respondents reported no access to a health care provider. Of those, 43 percent reported that cost prevented them from seeking care. Of those who reported chronic conditions ( n=22), over 50 percent did not have access to a health care provider. These findings highlight the need to further investigate the magnitude of the problem and begin exploring ways to improve affordable health care access among MSFWs in Northeastern Indiana. Originality/value The results from this study highlight the need for the development and implementation of community health education programs that target MSFWs in Indiana. The findings, although not generalized, offer important insights into health care challenges and barriers to access in Indiana. The authors recommend that assistance programs should be implemented for providing affordable health care services for Hispanic MSFWs.

Women’s perception of adolescent marijuana use in a hispanic seasonal farm worker community: A qualitative study

ABSTRACTWe examined the perception of adolescent children’s marijuana use and its consequences in the Hispanic seasonal farmworking community of South Florida via three focus groups with Hispanic adult female seasonal workers (n = 29). The women described how adolescents’ marijuana use increased over the past five years. Social networks for marijuana use were reported near schools and bus stations. Although participants expressed concern over adolescent marijuana use and involvement in selling marijuana, they reported that their job demands preclude their ability to supervise their children. Participants do not report unlawful marijuana use due to fear of deportation.

A Critical Caring Theory of Protection for Migrants and Seasonal Farmworkers.

Pesticide exposures represent inequities among a vulnerable population of migrant and seasonal farmworkers. A social justice theory synthesized from an environmental health research framework, a middle range theory of critical caring, and literature on pesticide exposure is presented as a situation-specific public health practice theory. Concepts from the physiological, epistemological, vulnerability, and health protection domains are related to concepts of critical caring revealing protective strategies for vulnerable populations exposed to pesticides. The key concepts are risk exposure, community assessment, transpersonal health promotion, community competence, and controllability. Protection from exposure involves raising awareness, critically assessing communities, educating for empowerment, building capacity, and advocating to ensure social justice. Critical caring protection is provided in a mutually respectful relationship that promotes responsibility at the individual and population levels.

Methodological concerns related to response bias in migrant and seasonal farmworkers.

The original objective was to measure the impact of kneepads on musculoskeletal pain in migrant and seasonal farmworkers (MSFWs). Secondary analyses were conducted to quantify the extent to which response bias may have skewed the study's results. Surveys were used to collect data on baseline pain and post-intervention pain, the amount of time participants spent wearing kneepads, and their overall ratings of the intervention. Participants did not experience significantly less pain with kneepads, and wore them for considerably less than the prescribed amount of time. However, subjects rated them very favorably. Given the strong suspicion of response bias, no firm conclusions could be drawn regarding the intervention. Unique survey methodologies must be used with MSFWs, who tend to have low research literacy and are particularly susceptible to response bias. Objective study outcomes are particularly favorable in this population in order to minimize dependence on self-reported measures. Am. J. Ind. Med. 59:1112-1119, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Foreign Seasonal Farm Workers’ Strategies at the Margins of the Finnish Welfare State: &lt;i&gt;Informal networks and weak ties&lt;/i&gt;

In this article, we analyse foreign seasonal berry and vegetable pickers’ strategies as regards securing their living and working conditions in Finland. Farmers are currently dependent on foreign seasonal workers. In spite of the potential gains working in Finland offers to foreign pickers, the risks associated with the work are diverted to the individual employee. The risks are not shared between the employee and the welfare state, which is regarded as a central feature of the Nordic welfare model. In this precarious situation, ‘weak ties’ become an important source of information and security for the pickers.

From telephones in rural Oaxaca to mobile phones among Mixtec farm workers in Oxnard, California

Indigenous Mexican immigrants (Mixtecs) from rural Oaxaca, Mexico, experience a high level of isolation and seasonal farm work, but the increasing speed of communication technology stands to overcome these difficulties. For farm workers, the initial experience of landlines and public pay phones was filled with anxiety and missed connections. Despite the benefits of mobile phones, their adoption was delayed among Mixtec in Oxnard, California, because of a combination of legal status, high cost, and seasonal work. This article finds that a surge in mobile phone adoption and use took place during a time where production of labor-intensive crops like strawberries increased throughout California, farm worker settlement patterns matured, and mobile phone plans changed becoming more affordable and easier to understand. The widespread adoption of mobile phones brought more predictability to the informal agricultural job market for farm workers, but this did not necessarily mean higher wages in the strawberry fields.

Observed and self-reported pesticide protective behaviors of Latino migrant and seasonal farmworkers

Agricultural pesticide exposure has potential adverse health effects for farmworkers that may be reduced by pesticide protective behaviors (PPBs). The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Worker Protection Standard (WPS) requires PPBs be taught to farmworkers prior to field work. Studies to date have not utilized observational methods to evaluate the degree to which PPBs are practiced by Latino migrant and seasonal farmworkers in the United States. The purpose of this study was to describe, compare, and contrast observed and self-reported PPBs used by Latino farmworkers; both PPBs that the WPS requires be taught and other PPBs were included. Observed and self-reported data were collected from 71 Latino farmworkers during the 2014 tobacco growing season in North Carolina. Participants were consistent in reporting and using long pants and closed shoes in the field most of the time. In addition, gloves, hats/bandanas, and water-resistant outerwear were frequently observed, although they are not required to be taught by the WPS. Farmworkers reported more long-sleeve (p=.028) and glove use (p=.000) than what was observed. It was uncommon to observe washing behavior before eating or drinking, even when washing supplies were available. Washing behaviors were significantly overreported for hand (p=.000; p=.000) and face (p=.000; p=.058) washing before eating and drinking in the field. This study documents that protective clothing behaviors that the WPS requires be taught, plus a few others are commonly practiced by Latino migrant and seasonal farmworkers, but washing behaviors in the field are not. Targeted strategies to improve washing behaviors in the field are needed.

Heat effects among migrant and seasonal farmworkers: a case study in Colorado

BackgroundAlthough migrant and seasonal farmworkers are highly vulnerable to ambient heat because of their working conditions, heat effects in this population have been rarely studied.ObjectivesWe estimated effects of heat on...

Dr. Virgilio Licona-A Crusader for Health and Social Justice.

Dr. Virgilio Licona—A Crusader for Health and Social Justice Jennifer Anderson, MPH (bio) and Julie Hulstein, MNM (bio) Dr. Virgilio Licona is a national treasure. He was a pioneer in the early days of the movement to create health equity through community health centers and he has dedicated his life to caring for the medically underserved and serving as the voice for those who are often not heard. He recently retired, after serving as Vice President of Medical Services at Salud Family Health Centers in Fort Lupton, Colorado since 2000. Salud is committed to providing an affordable, high quality medical home to families and individuals in the nine northern Colorado communities they serve. A gifted speaker, Dr. Licona can motivate and inspire those around him with words that so succinctly paint a picture that his listener cannot help but take up his cause. With this skill he has treated those most in need, administered health centers, impacted public policy, and changed the overall landscape of community health. “We were still burning on fumes from the sixties.” Born as the son of farmworkers in California, Licona came to Colorado in the early 1970s as a community organizer and political activist. After earning a degree from Colorado State University, he founded and served as director of La Clinica del Valle in Rocky Ford, Colorado largely to serve the needs of migrant and seasonal farmworkers. Licona and the countless others who were working for social justice intended to change the country. These defenders of the underserved were fueled by the efforts of the 1960s and President Johnson’s War on Poverty. He fully believed that through programs like Head Start, Medicaid, and job training through the Office of Economic Opportunity, that they could eliminate poverty. He believed that one day everyone could compete on a level playing field. Dr. Licona’s place in this movement would unfold over 40 years of dedicated service to community health centers. As director of La Clinica del Valle, Licona struggled to find a Physician Assistant (PA-C) to work in his clinic. Undeterred, he enrolled in school to become a PA-C. After graduation, he began his clinical career at Pueblo Community Health Center [End Page x] providing high quality, culturally competent health care. Not long after, the health center was unsuccessful in finding a physician to serve their rural community. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Licona enrolled in medical school at the Autonomous University of Hidalgo. Not one to waste an opportunity to build new partnerships, Dr. Licona was among the first residents to participate in a new collaboration between medical schools in Mexico and rural residencies in the United States. After completing his residency in family medicine he returned to Pueblo Community Health Center as a physician to serve those most in need. “Healthcare is for people and not for profit.” Dr. Licona doesn’t only provide care as a family physician. He has long been an ardent advocate for the medically underserved. He testified before the Colorado state legislature for the first time in 1975 on behalf of the community health center movement. In the late 1990s, he returned to the state capitol to successfully lead the advocacy efforts for a bill that would provide prenatal care for undocumented women. Dr. Licona also served on the National Advisory Council of the National Health Service Corps as well as on the National Rural Health Advisory Committee. He contributed as a member of the Legislative Policy Committee before being elected to the board of directors of the American Academy of Family Physicians. In his home state, he served as president of the Colorado Academy of Family Physicians and on the Board of The Colorado Health Foundation as well as Colorado Community Health Network and Community Health Association of Mountain/Plains States. Dr. Licona used these leadership positions to champion higher quality healthcare and increased access to care for those who need it the most. “We’re helping move the health care status of the country forward.” Dr. Licona has been recognized by his peers throughout his illustrious career. In 2000, he was the recipient of the Colorado Minority Health Forum’s “Outstanding Contributor to Minority Health Care in...

Access to and Disparities in Care among Migrant and Seasonal Farm Workers (MSFWs) at U.S. Health Centers.

This study describes the characteristics of migrant and seasonal farm workers (MSFWs) served by federally-funded health centers and examines disparities in access to primary and preventive care between migrant health center (MHC) and community health center (CHC) program patients. Cross-sectional analysis of the 2009 Health Center Patient Survey which has 2212 and 831 patients from CHC and MHC program patients, respectively. Our study showed that the MHC program provided comparable health care access and quality for MSFWs relative to CHC patients. However, there were challenges with access to primary care, such as getting timely medical and dental care and prescription medicine. These results affirmed the role of health centers in providing high-quality primary care and reducing disparities. However, continual efforts are needed to enhance access to and quality of care for MSFWs.

Observed and self-reported pesticide protective behaviors of Latino migrant and seasonal farmworkers

Observed and self-reported pesticide protective behaviors of Latino migrant and seasonal farmworkers

Mevsimlik Tarım İşçisi Gençlerin Sağlıklı Yaşam Bilgi ve Davranışlarına Akran Eğitiminin Etkisi/The Effect of Peer Education on the Healthy-Life Knowledge and Behavior of Young Seasonal Farmworkers

Objective: To evaluate the effects of peer education on young seasonal farmworkers’ healthy life knowledge and behavior related to living arrangement, pesticide use, and reproductive - sexual health. Method : In this controlled-experimental design study, two settlements with similar characteristics were selected experiment and control group. Twenty six youths from experimental area were selected and trained as peer educator. One-hundred young people from among the 650 in that neighborhood that received training were randomly selected and compared with the control group, which consisted of 125 youths. For data collection, a questionnaire developed by the authors was used. The questionnaires were applied in face-to-face interview. A total of 113 young people were reached in the intervention group (response rate 90%), and 118 young people were reached in the control group (response rate 94%). It was used t-test, chi-square and analyses of variance for statistical analyses. Findings : No significant differences were detected between the intervention and control groups with regards to age, gender, duration of work as farmworkers or level of education (p>0.05). The difference between the total scores of the intervention and control groups (respectively;50.8±8.6- 27.2±9.1) and the scores of sub domains were significant (p<0.05). In addition, the frequency of use of iodized salt, vaccination, hand-washing, breast self examination and testicular self examination was significantly higher in the intervention group. Conclusion : The peer education model could be of use in the development of healthy life skills among young seasonal farmworkers.

The Impact of Head Start Enrollment Duration on Migrant Children’s Health Outcomes

The purpose of this study is to examine whether family characteristics and the length of children’s enrollment in Migrant Head Start affects children’s health treatment. Children in the Michigan Migrant Head Start were classified depending on years of enrollments: One year (n = 638), two years (n = 293), and three or more years (n = 426). Logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine whether the probability of children receiving health treatment differed depending on years of enrollment. There is a higher health treatment rate among children who attended Head Start for multiple years than for those who attended for one year. Children’s special needs status, of siblings, ethnicity, parental educational level, and marital status were related to preventative dental and physical health treatment outcomes. Although the primary goal of Head Start is school readiness rather than health improvement, migrant and seasonal farmworker children are likely to receive more health treatment if they attend more years of comprehensive intervention, such as Head Start, for positive physical and dental health.

Healthcare providers' experiences screening for intimate partner violence among migrant and seasonal farmworking women: A phenomenological study.

BackgroundMigrant and seasonal farmworking (MSFW) women patients experience substantially more intimate partner violence (IPV) than the general population, but few health‐care providers screen patients for IPV. While researchers have examined screening practices in health‐care settings, none have exclusively focused on MSFW women.ObjectiveThe aim of this phenomenological study was to explore the experiences of health‐care providers who have screened for and/or addressed IPV with MSFW women patients.DesignResearchers utilized descriptive phenomenology to capture the lived experiences of these health‐care providers. Data were analysed using Colaizzi's seven‐stage framework.Setting and participantsInterviews were conducted with nine female participants – all of whom: (i) were clinically active health‐care providers within the MSFW community, (ii) were bilingual in English and Spanish or had access to a translator, (iii) had treated MSFW patients who had experienced IPV and (iv) were at least 18 years of age.ResultsParticipants' experiences were reflected in four emergent themes: (i) provider‐centered factors, (ii) patient‐centered factors, (iii) clinic‐centered factors and (iv) community‐centered factors. Participants described barriers to establish routine IPV assessment, decrease patient ambivalence and increase on‐site support and community resources.Discussion and conclusionsThis study aimed to generate a greater understanding of the experiences of health‐care providers with screening for and addressing IPV with MSFW patients. Implications and recommendations for research, clinical practice and policy are provided.

Diet Quality among Preschool-Age Children of Latino Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers in the United States.

Dietary quality has been linked to obesity in children. Obesity among children of farmworker families exceeds that of other US Hispanic children. Knowledge of their dietary quality is needed to understand the origins and prevention of this obesity. Mothers (n=237) of 3-year old children in farmworker families completed 3 24-hour recalls with trained interviewers using the Nutrition Data System for Research (NDS-R). Output was used to calculate total and component scores of the Revised Children's Diet Quality Index (RC-DQI). Mean total score was 62 (range 36-86) of an optimal score of 90. Scores for total fat, total grains, excess juice and iron were >80% of the optimum, but scores for added sugar, whole grains, fruits, and vegetables were considerably lower. Children in farmworker families have low overall dietary quality. Intervention targeted to specific food issues may be an efficient way to addressing the problem.