In April of 2022, SOS Public Health launched the Maternal Health Initiative with a baseline survey to understand the experiences and needs of the English-speaking multinational maternal community in South Korea. This initial blog post about such a survey will explore the demographics of respondents in order to understand the diversity within the multinational community.
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What is the Maternal Health Survey?
In April 2022 SOS Public Health launched the Maternal Health Initiative aimed at the multinational community who experienced pregnancy and childbirth in South Korea. The purpose of the survey was to analyze the experiences of the community when accessing maternal health care information and resources in South Korea. In addition, the goal was to find any challenges or obstacles individuals face when searching for information on pregnancy and childbirth support.
The results of this survey will provide a baseline and guidance for the SOS Public Health Maternal Health Initiative. Read more about this initiative here.
Thank you to all the participants
First of all, thank you to those who participated in the 2022 Maternal Health Survey. Such a survey may provide insight into maternal health needs within the English-speaking multinational community in South Korea. SOS Public Health will share the survey results in the upcoming weeks and months.
The image below shows the number of participants based on administrative district in South Korea.
Individuals from 15 of the 17 administrative districts in South Korea participated. The majority live in Seoul (28%), Gyeonggi-do (20%), and Incheon (10%).
Having respondents from many different administrative districts in South Korea is an important part of the 2022 Maternal Health Survey. South Korea uses an agile form of governance with many public health and wellness programs managed locally within administrative districts. It’s important to understand how maternal health care occurs in all areas of Korea as it may not be the same in Seoul as it is in Jeju.
Who participated in the 2022 Maternal Health Survey?
The 2022 Maternal Health Survey had a strong turnout with 87 responses from individuals who have been pregnant or who have given birth in South Korea within the last five years. There was diversity in the responses, with respondents coming from 19 countries and living in 15 of the 17 administrative districts in Korea.
Eighty-nine percent of respondents currently reside in South Korea, while just over 10% previously lived here. About one-fourth were pregnant at the time of the survey and more than 80% had previously given birth in South Korea. Respondents lived in South Korea for an average of 7 years and were, on average, 34 years old.
Nationalities and Race/Ethnicity
The 2022 Maternal Health Survey reflected the diversity of the multinational maternal community residing in South Korea. As shown in the chart below, respondents from 19 different countries across five continents participated in the Maternal Health Survey.
The largest number of respondents came from the United States of America (55%). This was followed by the United Kingdom (~7%) and South Africa (~6%). This survey was only available in English, therefore a larger number of respondents from English-speaking countries was expected. This means that there are some nationalities that may be underrepresented in this survey due to the language barrier.
Furthermore, a variety of races and ethnicities were represented in the survey. About 67% of respondents identified as white, followed by 10% who identified as mixed race. Additionally, respondents included those who identified as black or African American, Hispanic and Asian, such as Filipino, Indian, Vietnamese and Korean.
Languages
A variety of different languages are spoken according to the 2022 Maternal Health Survey. Because the survey was in English, all respondents speak at least some level of English. Almost 80% of respondents answered that English was one of their fluent languages. However, other fluent languages spoken totaled 18 among respondents.
A combined 10% speak Korean on at least a professional working level, and 26% had limited working proficiency. However, more than half of respondents had a partner who was fluent in Korean.
Socioeconomic Status
The 2022 Maternal Health Survey showed that respondents held one of 12 different visas. Almost half of the respondents reported holding an F-6 visa (Spouse of Korean National) followed by the A-3 visa (Military affiliated; 11%), and F-3 Visa (family dependents; 10%).
The majority of respondents held a Bachelor’s degree (47%) or a Master’s degree (38%). And the majority of household income was between 25,000,000 KRW – 49,999,999 (29%), and 50,000,000 – 99,999,999 KRW (41%)
Experiences
The demographics of the SOS Maternal Health survey reflected a certain level of diversity within the multinational community in South Korea. Such information may infer how different the experiences related to maternal health care may be due to the many different cultural backgrounds.
Using these demographics, SOS Public Health will delve deeper into the experiences reported by survey respondents in accessing maternal health care information and resources. Such research will allow SOS Public Health to compile information on possible resources and information on navigating pregnancy and childbirth in South Korea.
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Research Design & Implementation Team
Survey UX/UI Supervisor & Editor
Lanae Rivers-Woods moved to Korea in 2011 where she lives in the countryside with her family, friends, and puppies. She holds a BSSW (Bachelor’s of Science in Social Work), a MAIT (Master’s of Arts in International Teaching), and registered by the Pyeongtaek Korean Times with the Korean government as a Cultural Expert.
Ms. Rivers-Woods used her 15 years experience as a social architect, UX/UI designer, and technology consultant to found South of Seoul in 2015. South of Seoul is a volunteer organization that leverages technological tools to mitigate cultural dissonance in multi-cultural communities.
Through South of Seoul, Ms. Rivers-Woods works with independent volunteers, non-profit organizations, businesses, local & federal government, universities, and US military organizations to develop solutions to support English speaking international residents in rural South Korea.
Additionally, Ms. Rivers-Woods founded the South of Seoul smart phone app available for Google Play and iPhone. The app provides information a resources for those living and traveling in South Korea.
When she isn’t in South of Seoul development meetings or working her day job, Ms. Rivers-Woods loves to be outside at skate parks, the beach, or playing in the mountains.
Research Compliance Supervisor & Editor
Ms. Peck graduated from the University of Utah Asia Campus (UAC) in Incheon with a Master’s in Public Health and her Certification in Public Health (CPH). Ms. Peck also holds a Bachelor’s Degrees in Linguistics and one in International Studies with a Global Health emphasis.
Ms. Peck is Korean American and speaks both English and Korean. She has moved between the US and Korea since childhood, finally settling in Korea after graduating from UAC.
In 2021 Ms. Peck founded the South of Seoul Public Health Program which focuses on research and initiatives regarding the health and wellness of multinational residents in South Korea.
Additionally, Ms. Peck oversees the SOS Public Health Graduate Student Practicum Program which provides mentorship and training for Master’s in Public Health students. The program works with two students a semester with a focus on ethical UX research design, survey development, and initiative implementation.
Primary Researcher & Author
Denise Feurer holds a Master’s of Science in Public Health and a Bachelor’s in Nursing. Ms. Feurer is a public health researcher and advisor living and working in South Korea. Mrs. Feurer founded the Maternal Health Initiative for the South of Seoul Public Health Program in 2021. Her first research project or SOS Public Health launched in 2022.
Prior to joining the South of Seoul Public Health Program, Ms. Feurer volunteered for the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine’s (LSHTM) award-winning endeavor, the “Rapid Data Project”, to code and organize worldwide Covid-19 policies for WHO decision makers, student ambassador program representative, and UK Model WHO Academy.
