Grant: Planning and Dissemination Grant - Institute Community Support

The Caregiver Program in Canada attracts many professional women from low-income countries to fill its labour gaps in care work. In 2014, there were 16, 238 migrant caregivers in Canada. Although the evidence is limited, studies show that migrant caregivers face unique challenges compared to other temporary foreign migrant workers often based on the gendered nature of their care work. Further, they are at risk for mental health concerns because of their precarious migration status, often substandard working and living conditions and fear of repatriation. Recent changes to the Caregiver Program have meant that migrant caregivers no longer have access to permanent resident status after 24 months of paid employment, rendering their migration status even more uncertain. Indeed, our recent study in Ontario targeting this group found that migrant caregivers experienced mental distress, workplace abuse, lack of social support, and access barriers to care. A multi-faceted, inclusive approach is required to improve the working and living conditions of this vulnerable group and ultimately enhance their health outcomes. The overarching goal of this planning project is to build a cross provincial interdisciplinary and multi-sectorial research team with the intention to develop a team grant to better promote migrant caregivers' mental health. The team will collaborate with researchers, knowledge users and community partners from two high receiving Canadian provinces to meet the following specific objectives: 1) conduct an integrative literature and environment scan; 2) conduct several stakeholder consultations workshops; 3) establish an interdisciplinary and multi-sectorial research team.