Exploring the Experience of African Immigrant Mothers Providing Reproductive Health Education to Their Daughters Aged 10 to 14 Years

Bibliographic Data

ID19461590
AuthorsKafuli Agbemenu (0000-0001-7224-1899, State University of New York, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA, corresponding author), Jessica Devido (0000-0003-2979-509X, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA), Martha Ann Terry (0000-0001-5932-1536, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA), Margaret Hannan (University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA), Julius Kitutu (0000-0001-7726-8054, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA), Willa M Doswell (University of Pittsburgh), Willa Doswell (University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA)
Year2018
Volume29
Issue2
Pages123-130
Publication date2018-03-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Transcultural Nursing (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1043-6596 • E-ISSN: 1552-7832
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/1043659616681848
PMID27956481
OpenAlexW2562468999
LanguageEN
Citations received7
References cited30

Introduction: Adolescents have disproportionate rates of unplanned pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections when compared with all other age groups. Mothers are gatekeepers and providers of reproductive health education, which can prevent teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. Reproductive health education provided by African immigrant mothers is influenced by cultural experiences and cultural contexts that are not well understood and have not been studied. This study sought to describe the experience of African mothers living in the United States providing reproductive health education to their daughters aged 10 to 14 years. Method: A qualitative descriptive design was used. Twenty African immigrant mothers were interviewed in a community setting. Qualitative content analysis approach was used for analysis. Results: Three main themes emerged: (1) mothers’ reproductive health education in their country of origin, (2) mothers’ reproductive health communication with their daughters, and (3) changes due to the move to the United States. Discussion: Mothers believed daughters were too young for reproductive health education, leading to conversations with limited content that were frequently triggered by daughters’ exposure to reproductive health education outside the home. Implications: African immigrant mothers may benefit from culturally congruent discussions with health care providers about the reproductive health information they give their daughters

Environmental health · Geography · Health education · Immigration · Population · Public health · Qualitative research · Reproductive health · Sociology · Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health · Global Maternal and Child Health · Medicine · Migration, Health and Trauma · Nursing