Health as lived cultural practice in everyday life of Hispano-American immigrants to Switzerland

Author(s) : Isabella Bertschi

Source : https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckx187.064

Abstract:

Health literacy is seen as both an explanatory factor for health inequalities and an outcome of health promotion. Vulnerable groups, and in many cases immigrants, present lower levels of health literacy compared to the general population. Thus, they are one of the key target groups of health literacy initiatives. However, low participation rates among disadvantaged groups are common in health promotion. One explanation is a lack of fit between the programs and the social realities vulnerable social groups encounter. Therefore, research on health literacy should consider more strongly the embeddedness of health in everyday life as suggested by the WHO. The aim is to explore health and health-related competencies in the daily lives of Hispano-American immigrant families residing in Switzerland. Health and health literacy as lived cultural practices are investigated through an ethnographic approach: participant observation in various settings, interviews, and document analysis, alongside other methods, are used.