The Mentor Mother model provides peer support for migrant mothers and was taken on by an organization in Gothenburg, Sweden in 2021 to improve health and integration. The Mentor Mothers, providing the peer support, have themselves experienced moving to Sweden. The Mentor Mother model is an adaptation of the South African Philani Mentor Mother model, and has been adapted by two organizations in Sweden, one in Gothenburg and one in Malmö. The aim of this study was to gain a better understanding of the Mentor Mother model in Gothenburg. This was done by analyzing 18 semi-structured interviews and exploring experiences and perceptions of the model. These interviews were with the Mentor Mothers themselves, and with the mothers in contact with the model, thereby exploring experiences from two perspectives. Reflexive thematic analysis was conducted and three themes were identified, the importance of having a support network, understanding culture is as important as understanding language and the Mentor Mother model fills an unmet gap in society. The main findings included experiencing the support provided as beneficial, experiences of positive relationships and a valued community, and mistrust of social services and how the model mitigates this mistrust. The model was perceived as important from both perspectives, with participants stating that their mistrust toward social services had decreased since meeting the Mentor Mothers and describing invaluable help they had received in various situations. In conclusion, the positive experiences imply that similar peer support programs could be beneficial for migrants in similar contexts.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:uu-533064 |
| Date | January 2024 |
| Creators | Mattadóttir Eklund, Silja |
| Publisher | Uppsala universitet, Institutionen för kvinnors och barns hälsa |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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