Funding outcome

Newcomer women in Alberta have a disproportionately high rate of preterm births. Attempts to lower these rates have not been successful and in fact, Canadian preterm birth rates have increased by 20% over the last two decades. We argue a sociological/anthropological lens might provide an alternative approach to understanding and addressing this problem. There is some evidence that social factors like domestic violence or too frequent pregnancies cause preterm births. We know that these social risk factors are results of gender inequalities, but limited research has been done to understand how gender rules and values may play a role in creating and supporting these risk factors in newcomer populations. Our research will identify the social risk factors that newcomers believe caused their preterm births and explore if those social factors are the result of gender inequalities. We will invite women who moved to Canada in the last 10 years and had a preterm birth in the last two years, their husbands/partners if the women permit, and members of the immigrant communities to participate in our study. Data will be collected using methods like timeline mapping, in-depth interviews, narrative writing, and focus group discussions. The research will help us identify the social risk factors for preterm births among newcomer women through their experiences and understanding of it. We will share the research findings with women and policymakers with the objective to help service providers modify their services to meet the needs of the newcomer women in Alberta, and improve the health and well-being of women and children .