Purpose This study aims to investigate how living and working conditions, family obligations and religious beliefs and structural barriers to health-care access affect health-related experiences among Filipino migrant domestic workers (MDWs) in Taiwan. It contends that these factors could contribute to negative health outcomes among the population, including non-communicable diseases. Design/methodology/approach Qualitative methods were used for this study to understand in depth the experiences of the participants. Participant recruitment was done through snowball sampling. Semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were conducted from June to August 2023, in Taiwan, with a total of ten Filipino MDWs, two Taiwanese migrant labor NGO staff and a Taiwanese physician. The research protocol was approved by the Brandeis University Institutional Review Board. Findings Participants described shared experiences of sleep deprivation, food insecurity and heightened mental stress because of their working and living conditions. Family obligations and religious faith also informed health care-seeking decisions culturally. There are financial, linguistic and geographical barriers to health-care access in Taiwan, whereas some participants received threats of contract termination and deportation from private labor brokers. This study recognizes employers as a key stakeholder of MDWs’ health, as they dictate working and living conditions surrounding domestic work, hold power leverage over labor brokers and possess relative financial capability and familiarity with the Taiwanese health-care system that could help the workers overcome health-related challenges. Originality/value This study helps fill the empirical gap in the literature on migrant workers’ health in the Taiwanese context.
Yu-Hsiang Wu (Wed,) studied this question.