Objective: To identify barriers for migrants regarding the access to medical rehabilitation on behalf of the German Pension Insurance. Methods: Focus groups with migrants (n=5, 42 participants) and experts (n=1, 14 participants) were conducted and examined by qualitative content analysis. Results: We identified 4 categories of access barriers: 1. system-related, migrant-specific, 2. person-related, migrant-specific, 3. system-related, primarily not migrant-specific, and 4. person-related, primarily not migrant-specific barriers. Barriers in categories 3 and 4 are mostly class- or gender-specific. Due to associations between migration background, social status and gender roles, these barriers are often of specific importance to migrants as well. Taking such intersections of single categories of inequality (migration background, social status, gender) into account, access barriers can interact and form complexes of barriers. Conclusion: In order to explain and overcome the low utilization of medical rehabilitation by migrants, the interaction of migrant-, class- and gender-specific barriers in the system and in persons have to be considered. © 2015 Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart.

medical rehabilitation access barriers Migrants Utilization

Vulnerable Populations vulnerable population Germany pension Pensions sex ratio Disabled Persons human epidemiology middle aged disabled person statistics and numerical data Aged Health Care Rationing rehabilitation social status migrant Humans male female clinical article sex role health care organization adult migration content analysis Sex Distribution Utilization Review utilization age distribution Transients and Migrants Healthcare Disparities health care disparity Health Services Accessibility public health health care delivery National Health Programs