Australia is a multicultural society in which migrants from non-English-speaking backgrounds may be more vulnerable to illness after their new settlement, and language difficulties and cultural differences may affect their use of health services. The present qualitative study used focus group interviews to explore the health services used by Chinese migrants from Hong Kong and China. The general findings included strong preference for Chinese-speaking general practitioners, insufficient interpreter services, low use of preventive services, and lack of knowledge about the existence and role of ethnic health workers. The paper reports specific differences between migrants from China and Hong Kong, and by age group. It discusses reasons for these findings and notes the implications.

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information processing China Communication Barriers Australia methodology human communication disorder middle aged statistics health service Aged general practitioner language ethnology Humans health services research male female health services Physicians, Family Article adult migration Utilization Review patient attitude Hospitals Hong Kong Patient Acceptance of Health Care hospital Transients and Migrants attitude to health Focus Groups