Bristol ethnic minorities health investigation

Questionnaires, interview transcripts, cassette tapes, and published results of survey of concepts of illness, use of health services, etc, among Punjabi-speaking women in Bristol, 1986-1987

1985-1988

1 box

This material was given to the Contemporary Medical Archives Centre by Steve Fenton, University of Bristol, December 1996, at the suggestion of Qualidata. An additional 13 tape recordings were received from Dr Fenton in September 2000.

The project was entitled 'GP consultations and concepts of illness: Asian women in Bristol', and the questionnaires covered place of origin, diet, exercise and social conditions as well as relations with general practitioner, hospital treatment and factors affecting mental health such as attitudes towards life in Britain. It was originally planned to interview 100 Punjabi-speaking women who had arrived in Bristol as brides from India or Pakistan in the 1960s, asking standard questions to examine concepts of illness in general within the group, testing the received idea that ethnic minority communities look after their own and do not need help from statutory services. The terms in which the women described health and illness were examined, and an attempt was made to determine what part terminology played in their contact with general practitioners. Interviewees were mainly women in their 20s and 30s, interview by Kamaljit Poonia in doctors' waiting rooms and ante-natal clinics. The interviewees' co-operation encouraged the researchers to undertake more searching interviews than originally planned, which made it impossible to undertake a large number, and eventually only 34 women were asked to fill out the standard questionnaire. In-depth interviews involving home visits were undertaken with 12 of these women and with 2 who had not filled out the questionnaire, 6 resulting in tape recordings of over 10 hours per person. These led to a further study concentrating on experiences of depression.

Further study concentrating on experiences of depression not yet put in repository

Copyright remains with Steve Fenton: to be assigned to CMAC 10 years after date of deposit (ie 6 Dec 2006)

This collection has been catalogued and is available to library members. Some items have access restrictions which are explained in the item-level catalogue records.