Migration and Childbearing

The reproductive health and culturally sensitive care need among Chinese migrant mothers in Switzerland

This project is a mixed-method study with qualitative and quantitative research methods. It aims to explore, with broad perspectives, the culturally sensitive care needs of Chinese migrant mothers within the Swiss healthcare system from their pregnancy to the postpartum period.

Pregnancy is a period of increased vulnerability for migrant women since the transition to motherhood and migration to a new country both involve more profound changes in their psychological, social, and physical domains than any other developmental stage of the family life cycle.

Chinese migrants constitute the third-largest Asian migrant group in Switzerland. Women from Asia tend to experience greater cultural and language gaps than those from European countries. The objectives of this study were to explore their experiences of pregnancy, childbirth, and transition to parenthood within one year postpartum and their maternity care providers’ perceptions and experiences of intercultural caring for them in Switzerland.

Individual interviews were conducted with 14 Chinese women, 13 family members, and 12 maternity care providers, and questionnaires were administered to 145 Chinese women and their partners. We expect some of our findings on the Chinese migrant group could facilitate the understanding of other Asian groups and their maternity care needs in Switzerland.

This project is registered in Nursing Science at the University of Lausanne and sponsored by the Confucius Institute of the University of Geneva. It is led by Prof. Antje Horsch (University of Lausanne), Dr. Basile Zimmermann (University of Geneva), and Prof. Hong Lu (Peking University). If you have any questions about this project, please contact Dingcui CAI.

Publications

Cai D, Villanueva P, Stuijfzand S, Lu H, Zimmermann B, Horsch A. “The pregnancy experiences and antenatal care services of Chinese migrants in Switzerland: a qualitative study”. Journal of BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth. 2022 Dec ;22(1) :1-2.

Cai D, Villanueva P, Stuijfzand S, Lu H, Zimmermann B, Horsch A. “What matters to migrant women during labor and birth: Chinese mothers’ experiences in Switzerland” (under review). Journal of BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth.

Cai D, Villanueva P, Stuijfzand S, Lu H, Zimmermann B, Horsch A. “Postpartum cultural practices and social support among Chinese mothers following childbirth in Switzerland” (under review). Journal of Social Science & Medicine.

Presentations

“Maternity Care Providers’ Perceptions and Experiences of Intercultural Caring for Chinese Migrant Mothers in Switzerland”. The Swiss Society of Early Childhood Research Conference, 2024, Switzerland.

“Postpartum cultural practices and social support needs among Chinese mothers following childbirth in Switzerland”. The Society for Reproductive and Infant Psychology International Conference, 2023, Switzerland.

“What matters to migrant women during childbirth: a qualitative study exploring Chinese mothers’ experiences in Switzerland”. The Swiss Society for Reproductive and Infant Psychology International Conference, 2022, Switzerland.

“What matters to migrant women during childbirth: a qualitative study exploring Chinese mothers’ experiences in Switzerland”. The 19th European Doctoral Conference in Nursing Science, 2022, Switzerland.

“The experiences of pregnancy and antenatal care services of Chinese migrants in Switzerland: A qualitative study”. The Swiss Society of Early Childhood Research Conference, 2021, Switzerland.

“The childbirth experiences and healthcare needs of Chinese women: comparison between Switzerland and China”. The Swiss Society of Early Childhood Research Conference, 2019, Switzerland.

“The childbirth experiences and healthcare needs of Chinese women: comparison between Switzerland and China”.  Advanced nursing practice facing public health challenges, IUFRS symposium program - 10 years, 2019, Switzerland.

“The childbirth experiences and healthcare needs of Chinese women: comparison between Switzerland and China”. The Swiss Perinatal Research Conference, 2019, Switzerland.