Learning Objective #1: Become informed of the differences in health-related quality of life exhibited in the select vulnerable populations of carnival and migrant farmworker children

Learning Objective #2: Become cognizant of invisible vulnerable populations of children who exhibit health disparities which need to be addressed

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Purpose: Itinerant carnival and migrant farmworker families are nearly invisible to community health care systems because of the nature of their employment and their mobility. Their children experience crowded, often rudimentary housing conditions, discontinuous school attendance, and environmental safety hazards. Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) is considered an important outcome of health services. This descriptive pilot-study examined HRQOL of carnival and migrant worker children. Theoretical Framework: This research is based on Evans and Stoddart's Determinants of Health Model. Subjects: Participants included 32 children, ages 2-12 years, from a large vegetable farm (n=20), and a state fair and regional carnivals (n=12). Ethnically, half self-identified as Hispanics (53%). The majority were white (68.8%), American Indian (6.3%), missing 25% (all Latino). Methods: Children over age 5, and all parents with children over age 2 completed the PedsQL 4.0, a reliable and valid instrument available in both English and Spanish. Results: T-tests showed a large but non-significant difference between carnival/migrant children by parent-report (67 versus 78) and carnival/migrant child-report (73 versus 79). The psychosocial subscale was significantly lower for carnival versus migrant children, from the parents' perspective only (p=.026). Total and all other subscales scores from both children's and parent's perspectives showed a pattern in which carnival children's HRQOL mean scores are lower than migrant children's scores, which were both lower than a community sample from California (carnival<migrant<community). Conclusions: Data indicates disparities in HRQOL between children of migrant and carnival families compared to a community sample. The data provide strong support for the likelihood that this pattern will be statistically and clinically significant with a larger sample in the follow-up dissertation study. Further exploration of their current health status, and access to and use of health care is needed to determine the sources of low HRQOL and identify their most urgent health care needs.