Being damned if you do and damned if you don't - a qualitative study about the life situation of Romanian women who beg in the streets of Malmö.

Abstract: Title: Being damned if you do and damned if you don’t - a qualitative study about the life situation of Romanian women who beg in the streets of Malmö. Background: Health is unevenly distributed within and among the countries of the world, and usually follows a population’s socio-economic status. The lower this is, in comparison to others’, the poorer the health. Romania is one of the poorest countries in Europe. Its Roma minority live under more deprived socio-economic conditions than its majority population. During the past years Scandinavia has experienced an influx of poor EU-citizens, who beg in the streets. Most of these are from Romania, and the majority is Roma. While debates on this phenomenon are vivid, the research body on the experiences of the population in question is scarce. Aim: The specific aim of this study was to explore the experience of Romanian women who beg in the streets of Malmö, Sweden, focusing on socio-economic living conditions in Romania, daily life in Malmö and coping strategies to deal with their current situation. Methods: This qualitative study was guided by a Grounded Theory approach. Eight semi-structured individual interviews were conducted. These were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Codes, categories and a conceptual model were constructed and memos were written, in parallel with and after data collection. Results: The living conditions of the study population, both in Romania and in Sweden, were characterized by a continuous struggle to fulfill basic needs for themselves and their families. They coped with the situation through trying to make a living abroad, through cherishing their social relations and through engaging in a mental act of seesawing. Conclusion: The study population lives with multiple determinants of poor health, regardless of their efforts to improve their situation. Policy makers should therefore urgently take action to target both underlying and immediate causes of their poor health.