Mental Health Promoter Training with Guatemalan Refugee Women in Mexico City and the Camps of Southern Mexico

Mexico City is one of the most water-stressed cities in the world; poor quality water occurs in several parts of the City. The use of rainwater harvesting (RWH) as a source of drinking water is gaining acceptance in several contexts, but the quality of the water obtained through these systems has not been sufficiently studied. This manuscript presents the results of water quality tests from samples taken in each component of an RWH system, installed by Isla Urbana at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), southern Mexico City. The RWH system culminates with a drinking fountain which supplies water for the students, and other members of the university community. Samples were retrieved from August 2014 to November 2015, approximately once per month. Results showed that with an adequate operation of the RWH system the major ions, fluoride, zinc, arsenic, lead, iron, copper, chromium, aluminum, nitrate, and total coliforms comply with national standards and international guidelines for drinking water. Thus, RWH constitutes a viable option for providing good quality water in a megacity that will become increasingly water-stressed due to climate change.

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Improving Mental Health in Pregnancy for Refugee Women: Protocol for the Implementation and Evaluation of a Screening Program in Melbourne, Australia (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.13271 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Jacqueline Anne Boyle ◽

Suzanne Willey ◽

Rebecca Blackmore ◽

Christine East ◽

Jacqueline McBride ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Postnatal Depression ◽

Screening Program ◽

Routine Care ◽

Perinatal Mental Health ◽

Depression And Anxiety ◽

Symptoms Of Depression ◽

Refugee Women ◽

Health Disorders ◽

In Pregnancy

BACKGROUND Identifying mental health disorders in migrant and refugee women during pregnancy provides an opportunity for interventions that may benefit women and their families. Evidence suggests that perinatal mental health disorders impact mother-infant attachment at critical times, which can affect child development. Postnatal depression resulting in suicide is one of the leading causes of maternal mortality postpartum. Routine screening of perinatal mental health is recommended to improve the identification of depression and anxiety and to facilitate early management. However, screening is poorly implemented into routine practice. This study is the first to investigate routine screening for perinatal mental health in a maternity setting designed for refugee women. This study will determine whether symptoms of depression and anxiety are more likely to be detected by the screening program compared with routine care and will evaluate the screening program’s feasibility and acceptability to women and health care providers (HCPs). OBJECTIVE The objectives of this study are (1) to assess if refugee women are more likely to screen risk-positive for depression and anxiety than nonrefugee women, using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS); (2) to assess if screening in pregnancy using the EPDS enables better detection of symptoms of depression and anxiety in refugee women than current routine care; (3) to determine if a screening program for perinatal mental health in a maternity setting designed for refugee women is acceptable to women; and (4) to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the perinatal mental health screening program from the perspective of HCPs (including the barriers and enablers to implementation). METHODS This study uses an internationally recommended screening measure, the EPDS, and a locally developed psychosocial questionnaire, both administered in early pregnancy and again in the third trimester. These measures have been translated into the most common languages used by the women attending the clinic and are administered via an electronic platform (iCOPE). This platform automatically calculates the EPDS score and generates reports for the HCP and woman. A total of 119 refugee women and 155 nonrefugee women have been recruited to evaluate the screening program’s ability to detect depression and anxiety symptoms and will be compared with 34 refugee women receiving routine care. A subsample of women will participate in a qualitative assessment of the screening program’s acceptability and feasibility. Health service staff have been recruited to evaluate the integration of screening into maternity care. RESULTS The recruitment is complete, and data collection and analysis are underway. CONCLUSIONS It is anticipated that screening will increase the identification and management of depression and anxiety symptoms in pregnancy. New information will be generated on how to implement such a program in feasible and acceptable ways that will improve health outcomes for refugee women. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/13271

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Phenotypic clines across an unstudied hybrid zone in Woodhouse’s Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma woodhouseii)

The Auk ◽

10.1093/auk/uky018 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 136 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Devon A DeRaad ◽

James M Maley ◽

Whitney L E Tsai ◽

John E McCormack

Keyword(s):

Body Size ◽

Contact Zone ◽

Mexico City ◽

Rocky Mountains ◽

Secondary Contact ◽

Genetic Isolation ◽

Southern Mexico ◽

Phenotypic Differences ◽

Northern Mexico ◽

Group A

Abstract Woodhouse’s Scrub-Jay (Aphelocoma woodhouseii) comprises 7 subspecies, ranging from the Rocky Mountains to southern Mexico. We quantified the phenotype of specimens throughout Mexico and found support for significant phenotypic differences between “Sumichrast’s group” in southern Mexico (A. w. sumichrasti and A. w. remota) and the 2 subspecies in northern Mexico, or “Woodhouse’s group” (A. w. grisea and A. w. cyanotis). Despite significant differentiation in body size and mantle color, we found no clear geographic boundary between the groups, suggesting either a geographic cline or hybridization upon secondary contact. We tested for selection against hybridization by fitting models to geographic clines for both body size and back color, and found support for a stable contact zone centered near Mexico City, with selection against intermediate back color. Based on these results, we infer that Sumichrast’s and Woodhouse’s groups diverged during a period of geographic and genetic isolation. The phenotypic introgression between Sumichrast’s and Woodhouse’s groups near Mexico City likely represents a case of recent secondary contact, with selection against hybridization maintaining a geographically stable contact zone.

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Disability, violence, and mental health among Somali refugee women in a humanitarian setting

Global Mental Health ◽

10.1017/gmh.2020.23 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 7 ◽

Author(s):

Mazeda Hossain ◽

Rachel Pearson ◽

Alys McAlpine ◽

Loraine Bacchus ◽

Sheru W. Muuo ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Functional Disability ◽

Health Anxiety ◽

Poor Mental Health ◽

Refugee Camps ◽

Post Traumatic Stress ◽

Gender Based Violence ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Refugee Women

Abstract Background There is limited evidence on the relationship between disability, experiences of gender-based violence (GBV), and mental health among refugee women in humanitarian contexts. Methods A cross-sectional analysis was conducted of baseline data (n = 209) collected from women enrolled in a cohort study of refugee women accessing GBV response services in the Dadaab refugee camps in Kenya. Women were surveyed about GBV experiences (past 12 months, before the last 12 months, before arriving in the refugee camps), functional disability status, and mental health (anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress), and we explored the inter-relationship of these factors. Results Among women accessing GBV response services, 44% reported a disability. A higher proportion of women with a disability (69%) reported a past-year experience of physical intimate partner violence and/or physical or sexual non-partner violence, compared to women without a disability (54%). A higher proportion of women with a disability (32%) experienced non-partner physical or sexual violence before arriving in the camp compared to women without a disability (16%). Disability was associated with higher scores for depression (1.93, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.54–3.33), PTSD (2.26, 95% CI 0.03–4.49), and anxiety (1.54, 95% CI 0.13–2.95) after adjusting for age, length of encampment, partner status, number of children, and GBV indicators. Conclusions A large proportion of refugee women seeking GBV response services have disabilities, and refugee women with a disability are at high risk of poor mental health. This research highlights the need for mental health and disability screening within GBV response programming.

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Exploring the State of Gender-Centered Health Research in the Context of Refugee Resettlement in Canada: A Scoping Review

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph17207511 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (20) ◽

pp. 7511

Author(s):

Chloe Zivot ◽

Cate Dewey ◽

Cole Heasley ◽

Sharada Srinivasan ◽

Matthew Little

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Gender Roles ◽

Social Services ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Health Research ◽

Emotional Health ◽

Gender Based Violence ◽

Health Seeking ◽

Social And Emotional ◽

Refugee Women

Interdisciplinary health research that investigates gender as a relational process is necessary to facilitate a safe and healthy resettlement process for refugees in Canada. This scoping review explores the range, nature, and extent of published research examining gender in relation to refugee health during resettlement in Canada. An initial search of six databases yielded 7325 articles published before June 2019. A total of 34 articles published between 1988 and 2019 were included for in-depth review. Articles meeting inclusion criteria primarily focused on refugee women. Categories of focus included maternal health, social and emotional health, health impacts of sexual and gender-based violence and torture, access to health and social services, decision-making and health-seeking behavior, mental health, and sexual and reproductive health. Our thematic analysis identified connections between gender roles, expectations, ideals, and health through interactions and lived experiences within the family, community, and healthcare system. Review findings suggest that many refugee women are influenced by pervasive gender roles and expectations as well as exposed to gendered health systems and practices that may pose risks to health, particularly mental health and access to services. Further efforts should be made to understand processes and experiences of resilience and community building in countering negative impacts of gendered beliefs and practices on health during resettlement.

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