The Impact of Contextual Factors on Advocacy and Policy for Undocumented Immigrants in Healthcare

Internal and external contextual factors play a significant role in advocacy and policymaking, primarily in regard to access of undocumented immigrants to healthcare. These aspects can either favor or block the attempt to get critical issues onto the policy agenda: The Impact of Contextual Factors on Advocacy and Policy for Undocumented Immigrants in Healthcare.

Promoting Factors

To facilitate healthcare access advocacy among undocumented immigrants, a number of contextual factors can be employed. At the political level, states with liberal policies could be keener to offer healthcare programs to undocumented populations. Indicatively, a sanctuary policy that protects immigrants against deportation throughout the seeking-care time can create a positive context in terms of healthcare access (Alarcon, 2022).

Knowledge of the people is also important in creating advocacy. As more people of the general population become aware of the nature of the healthcare disparities that undocumented immigrants have to endure, pressure regarding the changes in policy to enable the promotion of equity will follow.

Furthermore, clinicians, mainly nurses, can additionally assume a distinguished role in altering the policies (Braveman et al., 2022). They also work directly with patients who face such obstacles, and therefore, their advocacy work is effective in encouraging the discussion of policy modifications, such as expanding healthcare coverage to undocumented populations.

Hindering Factors

On the other hand, several contextual problems exist that may sabotage the realization of these advocacy priorities. The restrictive immigration policies are associated with one of the most serious barriers to care among undocumented immigrants (Kisa & Kisa, 2024). These policies tend to exclude them from government health programs like Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, leading to high uninsurance rates.

Political opposition could also present a great obstacle, as certain policymakers say that giving undocumented immigrants access to healthcare benefits could strain the resources of the people. The cultural problem of stigmatizing undocumented immigrants might also undermine the sustainability of the policies that seek to manage their healthcare needs. Besides, it can be economically constrained, particularly by the lack of funding for community health centers that inhibits the potential to expand access to care among marginalized populations.

Conclusion

In conclusion, whereas contextual forces, including the political climate, community education, and professional advocacy, have the potential to advance healthcare access among undocumented immigrants, the greatest risks to these efforts are legal barriers, political opposition, cultural stigma, and budgetary stringency.

References

Alarcon, F. J. (2022). The migrant crisis and access to health care. Delaware Journal of Public Health, 8(4), 20–25. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9621574/#:~:text=Chronic%20conditions%20like%20diabetes%2C%20high

Braveman, P. A., Arkin, E., Proctor, D., Kauh, T., & Holm, N. (2022). Systemic and structural racism: Definitions, examples, health damages, and approaches to dismantling. Health Affairs, 41(2), 171–178. https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2021.01394

Kisa, S., & Kisa, A. (2024). “No Papers, No Treatment”: A scoping review of challenges faced by undocumented immigrants in accessing emergency healthcare. International Journal for Equity in Health, 23(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-024-02270-9

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WK4 8100 Contextual Factors
What is the impact of contextual factors on advocacy and policy? Contextual factors can range from internal (the organization, the practice, the environment, the culture, etc.) to external (laws, policies, politics, regulations, etc.). However, whether originating internally or externally, contextual factors have the capability of advancing or hindering an advocacy priority.

For this Discussion, you will consider how contextual factors impact policy making, focusing specifically on how these factors might impact your advocacy priority. Consider what contextual factors might promote getting your priority on the agenda, as well as those that might work against it.

The Impact of Contextual Factors on Advocacy and Policy for Undocumented Immigrants in Healthcare

To Prepare:

• Review resources about contextual factors.
• Consider how contextual factors will impact your advocacy priority.