Births, miscarriages and induced abortions among foreign born women in Finland

• Published in: European journal of public health Vol. 30; no. Supplement_5
• Main Authors: Jokela, S, Koukkula, M, Lilja, E, Klemetti, R, Koponen, P
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Oxford Publishing Limited (England) 01-09-2020
• Subjects: Abortion; Bias; Birth; Births; Education; Health education; Health services; Higher education; Miscarriage; Postcommunist societies; Public health; Regression analysis; Reproductive health; Response bias; Sexual health; Social factors; Socioeconomic data; Socioeconomic factors; Socioeconomics; Women; Middle East; Union of Soviet Socialist Republics > USSR; Africa; Finland; Estonia; Russia
• ISSN: 1101-1262; 1464-360X
• DOI: 10.1093/eurpub/ckaa165.349

Abstract
Background
The increasing number of foreign-born women living in Finland has raised a need for more information about their sexual and reproductive health and need for services. This study explores the prevalence of births, induced abortions and miscarriages as well as the associated socioeconomic factors of foreign-born women.
Methods
This study used data collected in the Survey on Well-Being Among Foreign Born Population (FinMonik), conducted in 2018-2019. The random sample (n = 6 695) consisted of women aged 18 to 64 years and living in Finland. The participation rate among women was 56% (n = 3 746). The results were stratified according to country groups based on geographic region of origin: Middle East and Africa; Russia, former Soviet Union and Estonia; Asia; EU, North America, Latin America and others. The analyses were conducted with logistic regression adjusting for age. In the analyses, weights were used to reduce non-response bias.
Results
The proportion of women who had at least one birth in their lifetime varied from 67 to 80%. Those from the Middle East or Africa had the highest proportion of three or more births (41%). The proportion of women who had experienced induced abortion was highest among women from Russia, former Soviet Union and Estonia: 34% of these women had experienced at least one abortion while 20% had experienced at least two abortions. No difference in reported miscarriages was observed between the groups (20-27%). In all groups, married women (82%) and those with only basic education (82%) had more often at least one birth than unmarried women (61%) and those with higher education (70%). Compared to the other groups, lower educated Russian, former Soviet Union and Estonian women had more often experienced at least one induced abortion (44 %).
Conclusions
There are major differences in the prevalence of births and abortions among women from different regions and educational level.
Key messages
Challenges in sexual and reproductive health vary by region of origin. Low-threshold health services and health education are needed to guarantee better sexual and reproductive health for all women.