![[ Visit Client Website ]](images/banner.gif)
The population of Black immigrants in the U.S. has been significantly growing, from about 800,000 in 1980 to 4.6 million in 2019 (Tamir, 2022); one in ten Blacks in the U.S. are immigrants (Tamir & Anderson, 2022). Black immigrant women have been understudied, underrepresented, and underreported in research, including studies that explore the influence of social determinants on their experiences with health and disease. Chronic diseases such as HIV/AIDs, cancer, and heart disease hold particular importance in both morbidity rates as well as quality of life outcomes. However, there is a gap in the research on Black female immigrants living with HIV/AIDS, cancer, or cardiovascular disease. The purpose of this scoping review was to synthesize the evidence regarding Black immigrant women who are living with HIV/AIDS, cancer, or heart disease in the United States.
Methods:
Following PRISMA guidelines (Moher et al., 2009) we searched peer-reviewed articles yielding 2,150 articles. Two reviewers independently screened for inclusion criteria: (a) written in English, (b)research conducted in the US, (c) adults with cancer, HIV/AIDS, or heart disease, and (d) foreign-born and US-born included in the sample, and sample included Black women, resulting in 234 articles. Two reviewers then conducted full text reviews using consensus processes and extracted and coded the data.
Results:
Studies (n=5) were published between 2007 and 2022, and sample sizes ranged from 82 to 22,554. Despite the search focusing broadly on cancer, HIV, and heart disease, three of the articles extracted for review focused on HIV, while two articles focused on cancer, identifying a substantial gap in the health literature. Thematic evidence was observed to include racial/ethnic discrimination, health access, including health insurance, quality of life, HIV acquisition, health behaviors, and cultural and linguistic barriers. Data sources varied and included the use of existing national data sets (e.g., NHANES) as well as primary data collection efforts. Despite identifying Black immigrant women in the sample, group sizes (i.e., the number of Black immigrant women included in the sample) across articles often restricted analyses, or the population was combined with other foreign-born groups, limiting the evidence available. However, descriptively, Black immigrant women across studies often had less access to health-promoting resources (e.g., routine care) and variable health outcomes based on the factors examined.
Conclusion and Implications:
This scoping review highlights implicit bias in health research. The lack of studies that disaggregate race in sample populations is one area that contributes to the gap in knowledge regarding Black immigrant women living with HIV/AIDS, cancer, or heart disease. Previous research has shown race and gender affect the quality of care, creating health disparities in the U.S. Advancing racial and social justice for Black immigrant women requires research that is generalizable to this marginalized population. Research and research-informed health care policies are needed to address these disparities.