Associate ProfessorZakia Hossain

Project Opportunities

Title: Health sociology, demography and international health

Summary of opportunity:

Dr Hossain’s research interests include:

Opportunity synopsis:

Dr Hossain has been engaged in higher degree research supervision and has been supervising students' research projects in areas such as:

- Ageing and cross-cultural issues,
- Stigma and HIV/AIDS,
- Acculturation and second generation,
- Children with intellectual disability,
- Smoking and young people,
- Diabetes management and migrants,
- Migrant women's breast screening project, 
- Reproductive health and NESB women.

Project Opportunities

Title: Migrant and Refugee Youths' Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights

Summary of opportunity:

The population of migrant and refugee youth in Greater Western Sydney is increasing exponentially each year. Little is understood about these young people's understanding of and ability to exert their sexual and reproductive health and rights. By centering their voices, we can better understand the social ecology of the barriers they encounter and the factors that facilitate informed sexual and reproductive health decision-making. This will result in a youth-determined model for policy and programming aimed at improving migrant and refugee sexual and reproductive health literacy, wellbeing and agency.

Opportunity synopsis:

This study explores migrant and refugee youths' (aged 16-24) understandings and experiences of sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) - a gap identified in on our interdisciplinary pilot work. Little is known about migrant and refugee youths' knowledge and agency related to SRHR in Greater Western Sydney because youth are rarely asked. Although sexual and reproductive wellbeing cannot be realised without SRHR - a fundamental human right - few studies have considered migrant and refugee youths' knowledge and agency in Greater Western Sydney. The little research conducted in this region (mostly our own) on migrant and refugee youths' sexual and reproductive health has mostly focused on the prevalence of unplanned pregnancy, having STIs, intergenerational issues, cross-cultural clashes and constructions of sexual and reproductive health in relation to culture and/or religion. From this work, and that of others, it became clear that only by centering youth voices and moving away from a deficit model of adolescence, migrancy and sexual and reproductive health could improvements in SRHR agency, decision making and wellbeing outcomes be optimised. It is important to acknowledge and address this epistemological gap in Greater Western Sydney - one of Australia's fasted growing regions.
This project therefore draws on our interdisciplinary pilot work and uses quantitative approach and participatory action research (PAR) to address the following study aims:
1. Investigate migrant and refugee youths' understanding of and experiences with sexual and reproductive health and rights.
2. Identify the barriers and facilitators migrant and refugee youth perceive to sexual and reproductive wellbeing, decision-making and agency.
3. Identify the socioecological factors that characterise youth sexual and reproductive health and rights and their support needs, literacy, service utilisation, availability and accessibility.
4. Develop a human rights-based and youth-determined model for policy and programming aimed at improving youth sexual and reproductive health agency and wellbeing.
This study centres SRHR as a fundamental human rights issue critical to the realisation of other human rights such as equality, autonomy, privacy and non-discrimination. Human rights are at the core of SRHR and PAR with their focus on the relationship between self-determination and health outcomes. This relationship is of great significance to migrant and refugee youth given the range of challenges they encounter which interfere with their ability to make informed and agentic sexual and reproductive health decisions.

----------Current Research Projects----------

Dune, T., Mpofu, E., Mapedzahama, V.,Hossain, Z.& Liamputtong, P. (2020-2022) “Migrant and Refugee Youths’ Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights” ARC Discovery Project grant: DP200103716.$299,000;

Hossain, S.Z.,Brennan, P., Mackey, M. (University of Sydney); Dr SuhaiL, S. (RAK Medical and Health Science Hospital); Dr D.Gauer J-M, Ms Aiken, S (RAK Hospital) (2021-2022). Knowledge, Attitudes, and Health Beliefs towards Cervical Cancer and Screening among Women in Ras Al-Khaimah (RAK) and Migrant Women in Sydney. Sheik Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi Foundation grant. 50,000 AED. AU$39,000;

Bacchiella, L., Martin, M and Hossain, S. Z. (2019) Cervical Cancer Awareness and Screening in Multicultural Community (2019-2020).Cancer Institute NSW $200,000.

Mackenzie, L, Hossain, S.Z., (2019-2020) Chinese breast cancer survivors: Cognitive and psycho-social issues and their impact on quality of life. China Study Centre, University of Sydney. $10,000.

Bacchiella, L., Martin, M and Hossain, S. Z. (2018-2019)Project evaluation: Breast Screen Awareness in Multicultural Community (2018-2019). Cancer Institute NSW. $164,642.