A vast majority of our understanding of immigrant health centers around traits of individuals and groups. While useful, current approaches to research on immigrant health decontextualize the experience of immigrants in the United States. This paper uses a historical case study of the Chinese community in San Francisco to develop a contextual framework to understand the levels of influence that impact the availability of health resources in immigrant communities. International, transnational, transcommunity, and enclave contexts have shaped health care access for Chinese immigrants in San Francisco. The conceptual framework provides a basis for future research, programmatic, and policy work that integrates individual and contextual factors in assessing and improving immigrant access to health resources. © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2008.

Chinese Enclave Context health care transnational

China health care planning demography human statistics Ethnic Groups Internationality ethnic group Health Resources international cooperation ethnology San Francisco Residence Characteristics United States Humans California Asian Americans Emigrants and Immigrants Asian American Acculturation cultural factor Article migration Utilization Review Health Services Accessibility health care delivery