Table 1.
Summary of findings
| Sector of health care | No. of studies [references] | Inequality (trend) | Description of trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Outpatient care (unspecific) | 5 [17–21] | + | ▪ Higher probability of utilization especially among migrant children and adolescents. |
| Outpatient care (general practitioner or paediatrician) | 5 [22–26] | O | ▪ No striking differences, but lower probability of utilization among migrant children and adolescents. ▪ Higher utilization among 1st generation migrants. |
| Outpatient care (specialists) | 14 [22, 23, 25–36] | – | ▪ Lower frequency and probability of utilization especially among 1st generation migrants. ▪ Inequality varies with the type of specialist. |
| Inpatient care | 10 [17, 18, 23, 25, 26, 29, 30, 37–39] | O | ▪ Inconsistent results, differences in terms of type of disease. |
| Emergency care | 3 [26, 40, 41] | O | ▪ Inconsistent results: Higher probability of utilization among migrant adults, but no difference among children and adolescents. |
| Rehabilitation | 4 [26, 42–44] | – | ▪ Results tend to lower usage among migrants. ▪ Two multivariate analyses indicate lower probability of utilization among people with migrant background. |
| Therapists and counselling services | 8 [22, 26, 28, 45–49] | – | ▪ Lower probability of utilization among 1st generation migrants (physical therapy) and migrant children of lower age groups (physical and occupational therapy). ▪ In terms of (psychosocial) counselling slightly higher frequency of uptake among natives, but no differences in the probability for cancer survivors. |
| Medication and complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) | 13 [24, 26, 50–59] | – | ▪ Lower frequency and probability of utilization among people with migrant background, especially for CAM and in case of self-medication (e.g. over-the-counter drugs). ▪ Unclear pattern in terms of prescribed drugs, but trend to higher use among migrants. |
| Early detection (cancer) | 7 [17, 26, 60–64] | – | ▪ Lower frequency and probability of participation especially among migrant women and migrants of the 1st generation or with two-sided background (any cancer sites). |
| Early detection (children) | 5 [25, 65–68] | – | ▪ Consistently lower frequency and probability of participation in the preventive health care program for children with migrant background. |
| Vaccination | 13 [41, 61, 66, 67, 69–77] | O | ▪ Inequality varies with the type of vaccination. ▪ In some cases, lower frequency and probability of utilization notably among 1st generation migrants, in other cases, lower uptake among natives. |
| General health check-up | 2 [26, 61] | – | ▪ Lower frequency of utilization among migrants, but small number of studies. |
| Oral health check-up | 7 [24, 26, 27, 58, 61, 78, 79] | – | ▪ Lower frequency and probability of utilization in all age groups of migrants. |
+ = Higher frequency and/or probability of utilization among people with migration background
– = Lower frequency and/or probability of utilization among people with migration background
O = No consistent pattern/no difference