Factors Associated with Healthcare Professionals' Attitudes Toward Migrant Patients: A Cross-Sectional, Exploratory...

Objective: To determine healthcare professionals' attitudes toward migrant patients and explore the sociodemographic and migration-related factors associated with these attitudes. Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional, exploratory study was conducted with 390 healthcare professionals reached through a Facebook-based professional community and subsequently via other social media platforms using snowball sampling. Data were collected using a Demographic Information Form and the Healthcare Professionals' Attitudes Toward Migrants Scale. Data Analysis involved the use of independent-samples t-tests or one-way ANOVAs, or Mann-Whitney U or Kruskal-Wallis tests, based on distribution characteristics; effect sizes and 95% confidence intervals were calculated for each comparison, and the Benjamini-Hochberg false discovery rate (FDR) correction was applied to all 96 comparisons reported. Additionally, a multiple linear regression analysis was performed using conceptually justified predictors to identify independent and interrelated factors. Results: The mean total attitude score was 38.47 ± 10.71 (the total score was calculated by reversing the scores on the positive attitude subscale; thus, a higher score indicates a more negative overall attitude; see Methods). In pairwise comparisons, attitude scores differed according to marital status, job satisfaction, the number of migrant patients encountered, language barriers, cultural differences, access to interpreters, perceived competence in providing care, perceptions of migrants' attitudes, perceived social prejudice, workload, and willingness to receive training on migrant health (raw p < 0.05 in 42 of 96 comparisons; 39 after FDR correction; 22 of these 42 also met a stricter α = 0.001 threshold applied given the large number of repeated comparisons). Multivariable regression (R² = 0.398) showed that perceived social prejudice (standardized β = 0.300), reluctance to pursue education (β = 0.287), and increased workload (β = 0.181) were independently associated with higher total attitude scores. Inaccessibility of interpreters (p = 0.010) and negative perception of migrants' attitudes (p = 0.029) showed associations at the conventional p < 0.05 level but did not meet the stricter α = 0.001 threshold. Conclusions: In this exploratory sample, healthcare professionals' attitudes toward migrant patients were associated not only with individual characteristics but also with communication barriers, cultural competence, and working conditions. Given that the study design was cross-sectional and based on non-probability sampling, these associations should be interpreted with caution and not assumed to be causal. Strengthening professional interpreter services, expanding cultural competence training, and evaluating institutional support strategies through future controlled or longitudinal studies may help improve healthcare professionals' attitudes and promote migrant-friendly, equitable healthcare services.