New research from Adelaide University has compared the sexual and reproductive healthcare seeking behaviours of culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) men to non-CALD men in Australia over a decade.
The study by School of Public Health PhD candidate Patience Castleton analysed data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Male Health (Ten to Men) in 2013, 2016, 2020 and 2022.
“Almost a third of the Australian population are migrants, yet their health and healthcare needs are severely under-researched and as such this significant population are under-represented in service design and policy,” Castleton said.
“It is therefore important for research to understand what differences exist in sexual and reproductive healthcare (SRH) care access amongst migrant and non-migrant men in Australia.
“Men from culturally diverse backgrounds face a number of individual and structural barriers to accessing SRH care, including cultural taboos around SRH, language barriers, masculine norms and financial barriers.
“Understanding the trends and barriers for service use is essential for informing culturally sensitive healthcare delivery and ensuring that health promotion and services are responsive to the needs of CALD communities.”
The findings have been published in the American Journal of Men’s Health.
“While battling through masculine characteristics and gender norms that position SRH as a feminine issue is challenging, men play an important role in preconception health and must be better included in all SRH services and programmes,” Castleton said.
“We found that CALD men were 33% less likely to visit specialists and 47% less likely to seek care from mental health professionals but 28% more likely to have visited a GP or nurse.
“CALD men were also 42% less likely to visit a sexual health clinic compared with non-CALD men.
“We found that CALD men are 17% more likely to face socio-economic barriers, including high costs and lack of transportation, when seeking health care compared with non-CALD men, indicating how structural disadvantages disproportionately constrain their health opportunities,” senior author Associate Professor Zohra Lassi, School of Public Health, said.
To bridge cultural gaps in understanding, digital health technologies could be used if up to date, culturally responsive and relevant.
“Information packs and resources should also be distributed to community centres and made available to migrants and refugees upon entrance to Australia, which provide a clear overview of health care and provide reputable sources of online information,” Castleton said.