Capturing refugee caregivers lived experiences on child health care in Portugal: a qualitative study
A Gama, M Rosário Oliveira Martins, S DiasAbstract
Background
In a highly politicized migration landscape, research with migrant populations requires methodological sensitivity. Refugee children face complex health challenges influenced by pre-migration trajectories and structural barriers in host countries. While access to healthcare is central to promoting child health, vulnerable mobile populations frequently struggle to navigate health systems. Existing studies largely reflect health professionals’ perspectives, leaving the lived experiences of refugee caregivers underexplored.
Methods
This qualitative study used semi‑structured interviews to explore refugee families’ perspectives on their children’s health needs and access to healthcare in Portugal, with a culturally diverse sample of refugee caregivers (n = 30) of children under 15 years old. Recruitment through non‑governmental organizations enabled engagement with families in trusted environments, acknowledging the need for flexible, context‑sensitive approaches when working with migrant populations. Interviews explored children’s health needs, caregivers’ knowledge and perceptions of the health system, healthcare‑seeking experiences and perceived barriers, while attentive to power dynamics and cultural expectations. Sociodemographic data were collected to contextualize heterogeneity within the sample.
Results
Findings elucidate children’s health trajectories and interactions with the Portuguese health system, and highlight how gender, origin and length of stay shape families’ narratives. The experiences shared and the barriers identified were interpreted considering methodological choices, such as recruitment pathways and interview settings.
Conclusions
By foregrounding the voices of refugee families through context‑responsive qualitative methods, this study provides insights into the lived realities of accessing healthcare for refugee children that can inform culturally attuned policies and interventions essential for equitable health systems in Europe.