AIM: This paper explores the concept of migrant women as used in European healthcare literature in context of pregnancy to provide a clearer understanding of the concept for use in research and service delivery. METHODS: Walker and Avant's method of concept analysis. RESULTS: The literature demonstrates ambiguity around the concept; most papers do not provide an explicit or detailed definition of the concept. They include the basic idea that women have moved from an identifiable region/country to the country in which the research is undertaken but fail to acknowledge adequately the heterogeneity of migrant women. The paper provides a definition of the concept as a descriptive theory and argues that research must include a clear definition of the migrant specific demographics of the women. This should include country/region of origin and host, status within the legal system of host country, type of migration experience, and length of residence. CONCLUSION: There is a need for a more systematic conceptualization of the idea of migrant women within European literature related to pregnancy experiences and outcomes to reflect the heterogeneity of this concept. To this end, the schema suggested in this paper should be adopted in future research.

Anthropology Institute of Social Sciences Ivo Pilar Zagreb Croatia

Department of Political Science Hobart and William Smith Colleges Geneva NY USA

Department of Sociology Faculty of Philosophy and Arts University of West Bohemia in Pilsen Plzen Czech Republic

Faculty of Health Studies University of Bradford Bradford West Yorks UK

Liverpool John Moore's University Liverpool UK

Midwifery Research and Education Unit Hannover Medical School Hannover Germany

Sociology and Senior Researcher at the Institute of International and Social Studies School of Governance Law and Society Tallinn University Tallinn Estonia

University of Central Lancashire Preston UK

Zobrazit více v PubMed

Almeida, L. M. , Casanova, C. , Caldas, J. , Ayres‐de‐Campos, D. , & Dias, S. (2014). Migrant women's perceptions of healthcare during pregnancy and early motherhood: Addressing the social determinants of health. Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 16(4), 719–723. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903‐013‐9834‐4 PubMed DOI

Aspinall, P. , & Watters, C. (2010). Refugees and asylum seekers: A review from an equality and human rights perspective. Retrieved from https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/sites/default/files/reseearch‐report‐52‐refugees‐and‐asylum‐seeker‐research.pdf

Balaam, M.‐C. , Akerjordet, K. , Lyberg, A. , Kaiser, B. , Schoening, E. , Fredriksen, A.‐M. , & Severinsson, E. (2013). A qualitative review of migrant women's perceptions of their needs and experiences related to pregnancy and childbirth. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 69(9), 1919–1930. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.12139 PubMed DOI

Baldwin, M. A. (2008). Concept analysis as a method of inquiry. Nurse Researcher, 15(2), 49–58. https://doi.org/10.7748/nr2008.01.15.2.49.c6329 PubMed DOI

Binder, P. , Johnsdotter, S. , & Essén, B. (2012). Conceptualising the prevention of adverse obstetric outcomes among immigrants using the “three delays” framework in a high‐income context. Social Science & Medicine, 75(11), 2028–2036. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.08.010 PubMed DOI

Bray, J. , Gorman, D. , Dundas, K. , & Sim, J. (2010). Obstetric care of new European migrants in Scotland: An audit of antenatal care, obstetric outcomes and communication. Scottish Medical Journal, 55(3), 26–31. https://doi.org/10.1258/rsmsmj.55.3.26 PubMed DOI

Carolan, M. (2010). Pregnancy health status of sub‐Saharan refugee women who have resettled in developed countries: A review of the literature. Midwifery, 26(4), 407–414. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2008.11.002 PubMed DOI

David, M. , Pachaly, J. , & Vetter, K. (2006). Perinatal outcome in Berlin (Germany) among immigrants from Turkey. Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 274(5), 271–278. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404‐006‐0182‐7 PubMed DOI

Essen, B. , Hanson, B. , Ostergren, P.‐O. , Lindquist, P. , & Gudmundsson, S. (2000). Increased perinatal mortality among sub‐Saharan immigrants in a city‐population in Sweden. Acta Obstetricia et Gynecologica Scandinavica, 79(9), 737–743. https://doi.org/10.3109/00016340009169187 PubMed DOI

Eurostat . (2016). Asylum and first time asylum applicants by citizenship, age and sex. Annual aggregated data. Retrieved from http://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/submitViewTableAction.do

Gagnon, A. J. , Zimbeck, M. , & Zeitlin, J. (2009). Migration to western industrialised countries and perinatal health: A systematic review. Social Science & Medicine, 69(6), 934–946. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2009.06.027 PubMed DOI

International Women's Health Coalition (2013) International women's health coalition. UN resolution calls on governments to provide sexual and reproductive health services to migrants. 2013. http://iwhc.org/press‐release/un‐resolution‐calls‐governments‐provide‐sexual‐reproductive‐health‐services‐migrants/

Karl‐Trummer, U. , Krajic, K. , Novak‐Zezula, S. , & Pelikan, J. M. (2006). Prenatal courses as health promotion intervention for migrant/ethnic minority women: High efforts and good results, but low attendance. Diversity in Health and Social Care, 3, 55–58.

Kilner, H. (2014). Hostile health care: Why charging migrants will harm the most vulnerable. British Journal of General Practice, 64(626), e590–e592. https://doi.org/10.3399/bjgp14x681565 PubMed DOI PMC

Mantovani, N. , & Thomas, H. (2014). Choosing motherhood: The complexities of pregnancy decision‐making among young black women “looked after” by the state. Midwifery, 30(3), e72–e78. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2013.10.015 PubMed DOI

Merry, L. , Semenic, S. , Gyorkos, T. W. , Fraser, W. , Small, R. , & Gagnon, A. J. (2016). International migration as a determinant of emergency caesarean. Women and Birth, 29(5), e89–e98. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wombi.2016.04.001 PubMed DOI

Merten, S. , Wyss, C. , & Ackermann‐Liebrich, U. (2007). Caesarean sections and breastfeeding initiation among migrants in Switzerland. International Journal of Public Health, 52(4), 210–222. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00038‐007‐6035‐8 PubMed DOI

du Monde Médecins (2014) Access to healthcare for the most vulnerable in a Europe in Social crisis. May 2014. https://mdmeuroblog.wordpress.com/2014/05/13/new‐report‐on‐access‐to‐healthcare‐for‐the‐most‐vulnerable‐in‐a‐europe‐in‐social‐crisis/

Munro, K. , Jarvis, C. , Munoz, M. , D'Souza, V. , & Graves, L. (2012). Undocumented pregnant women: What does the literature tell us? Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health, 15(2), 281–291. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903‐012‐9587‐5 PubMed DOI

Nuopponen, A. (2010). Methods of concept analysis: A comparative study. LSP Journal, 1(1), 4–12. Retrieved from http://rauli.cbs.dk/index.php/lspcog/article/view/2970

OECD‐UNDESA (2013) World migration in figures http://www.oecd.org/els/mig/World‐Migration‐in‐Figures.pdf

OED (n.d.). Oxford English dictionary. Retrieved July 4, 2016, from http://www.oed.com/

Perez Ramirez, F. , Garcia‐Garcia, I. , & Peralta‐Ramirez, M. I. (2013). The migration process as a stress factor in pregnant immigrant women in Spain. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 24(4), 348–354. https://doi.org/10.1177/1043659613493328 PubMed DOI

Ramos, J. M. , Milla, A. , Rodríguez, J. C. , Padilla, S. , Masiá, M. , & Gutiérrez, F. (2011). Seroprevalence of Toxoplasma gondii infection among immigrant and native pregnant women in eastern Spain. Parasitology Research, 109(5), 1447–1452. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436‐011‐2393‐5 PubMed DOI

Reeske, A. , Kutschmann, M. , Razum, O. , & Spallek, J. (2011). Stillbirth differences according to regions of origin: An analysis of the German perinatal database, 2004‐2007. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/1471‐2393‐11‐63 PubMed DOI PMC

Risjord, M. (2009). Rethinking concept analysis. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 65(3), 684–691. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365‐2648.2008.04903.x PubMed DOI

Rutayisire, E. , Wu, X. , Huang, K. , Tao, S. , Chen, Y. , & Tao, F. (2016). Caesarean section may increase the risk of both overweight and obesity in preschool children. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 16(1), 338–346. PubMed PMC

Shaokang, Z. , Zhenwei, S. , & Blas, E. (2002). Economic transition and maternal health care for internal migrants in Shanghai, China. Health Policy and Planning, 17(Suppl 1), 47–55. https://doi.org/10.1093/heapol/17.suppl_1.47 PubMed DOI

Song, J.‐E. , Ahn, J.‐A. , Kim, T. , & Roh, E. H. (2016). A Qualitative review of immigrant women's experiences of maternal adaptation in South Korea. Midwifery, 39, 35–43. PubMed

Tariq, S. , Pillen, A. , Tookey, P. A. , Brown, A. E. , & Elford, J. (2012). The impact of African ethnicity and migration on pregnancy in women living with HIV in the UK: Design and methods. BMC Public Health, 12(1), 596 https://doi.org/10.1186/1471‐2458‐12‐596 PubMed DOI PMC

UN . (2016). International migration report 2015: Highlights (ST/ESA/SER.A/375). Retrieved from http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/migration/publications/migrationreport/docs/MigrationReport2015_Highlights.pdf

UNHCR . (2015). Women, particular risks and challenges. Retrieved from: http://www.unhcr.org/pages/49c3646c1d9.html

Vaiou, D. , & Stratigaki, M. (2008). Fron “Settlement” to “Integration”: Informal practices and social services for women migrants in Athens. European Urban and Regional Studies, 15(2), 119–131. https://doi.org/10.1177/0969776407087545 DOI

Velemínský, M. J. , Průchová, D. , Vránová, V. , Samková, J. , Samek, J. , Porche, S. , & Velemínksý, M. S. (2014). Medical and salutogenic approaches and their integration in taking prenatal and postnatal care of immigrants. Neuroendocrinology Letters, 35(Suppl. 1), 67–79. PubMed

Viken, B. , Balaam, M.‐C. , & Lyberg, A. (2017). A salutogenic perspective on maternity care for migrant women In Church S., Firth L., Balaam M.‐C., Smith V., van der Walt C., Downe S., & van Teijlingen E. (Eds.), New thinking on improving maternity care: International perspectives. London: Pinter & Martin Publishers.

Walker, L. O. , & Avant, K. C. (2011). Strategies for theory construction in nursing (5th edition) (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J: Pearson Education.

Waters, M. C. , & Pineau Gerstein, M. (Eds.). (2016). The integration of immigrants into American society. https://doi.org/10.17226/21746 DOI

Wolff, H. , Epiney, M. , Lourenco, A. P. , Costanza, M. C. , Delieutraz‐Marchand, J. , Andreoli, N. , … Irion, O. (2008). Undocumented migrants lack access to pregnancy care and prevention. BMC Public Health, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/1471‐2458‐8‐93 PubMed DOI PMC

Wolff, H. , Lourenço, A. , Bodenmann, P. , Epiney, M. , Uny, M. , Andreoli, N. , & Dubuisson, J.‐B. (2008). Chlamydia trachomatis prevalence in undocumented migrants undergoing voluntary termination of pregnancy: A prospective cohort study. BMC Public Health, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/1471‐2458‐8‐391 PubMed DOI PMC

Wolff, H. , Stalder, H. , Epiney, M. , Walder, A. , Irion, O. , & Morabia, A. (2005). Health care and illegality: A survey of undocumented pregnant immigrants in Geneva. Social Science & Medicine, 60(9), 2149–2154. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.12.007 PubMed DOI

World Health Organization (WHO) . (2015) Public health aspects of migration in Europe. Migration and health at the 2014 European Public Health (EPH) Conference 2015 [cited 12 July 2015]; Available from: http://www.euro.who.int/__data/assets/pdf_file/0010/269452/Public‐Health‐and‐Migration‐Newsletter‐4th‐Issue_NEWS_220115.pdf?ua=

Yeasmin, S. F. , & Regmi, K. (2013). A qualitative study on the food habits and related beliefs of pregnant British Bangladeshis. Health Care for Women International, 34(5), 395–415. https://doi.org/10.1080/07399332.2012.740111 PubMed DOI

Inclusiveness of Access Policies to Maternity Care for Migrant Women Across Europe: A Policy Review