Physical Intimate Partner Violence, Childhood Physical Abuse and Mental Health of U.S. Caribbean Women: The Interrelationship of Social, Contextual, and Migratory Influences

The literature has shown an increased risk for mental health conditions among victims of domestic violence. Few studies have examined the relationship between mental health disorders and domestic violence among Caribbean women, and how the association might be influenced by migratory and contextual factors. This study addresses the mental well-being of U.S. Caribbean Black women victims of domestic violence, and the relationships between acculturation, discrimination, and demographic influences. An analysis of data from the 2001–2003 National Survey of American Life (NSAL) re-interview, the first and most complete study on U.S. Caribbean Blacks, was conducted. Bivariate analysis revealed an association between acts of physical domestic violence and mental health conditions, with generally higher risk among women who reported both severe physical intimate partner violence and childhood physical abuse. Multivariate logistic regression indicates an association between specific mental disorders and acts of domestic violence. Acculturation, length of residence in the United States, age, education, poverty, and country of origin were also associated with mental health. The study highlights future directions for exploration including additional investigation of the influence of acculturation on the physical health of victims of domestic violence.

Caribbean Faith-Based Organisations: Friend or Foe in the fight against the feminisation of HIV and AIDS in the Anglophone Caribbean

The feminisation of HIV and AIDS has become a worldwide phenomenon, and the Caribbean region has not been fortunate enough to be excluded. Caribbean females had 3-4 times higher infection rates than males up to a decade ago. Studies that focus on the contributing psychosocial factors to HIV risk in the Caribbean are limited. This narrative review showcases pivotal work which addresses the reciprocally connected responsibilities of patriarchy and religious practices and how they feed into the desolate reality of Anglophone Caribbean women. The relationship between these cultural issues in the Caribbean, using an anthropological lens, sets a platform for an investigation into HIV and AIDS. This paper seeks to encourage further research centred on the religious elements, which influence heterosexual relationships, and how these relationships are predisposed to potential HIV and AIDS risk. The ultimate goal of this study is to provide English- speaking Caribbean faith-based organisations, public health officials and policymakers a public stage to consider further policy implications for the staggering and disproportionate rates of HIV and AIDS between women and men.

Stories the mangroves hold: reflections on Indo-Caribbean feminist community archiving

This article invites the reader into conversation about silenced stories, intergenerational connection and what it means to reimagine Indo-Caribbean feminist histories. The authors of this article are coauthors of a digital archive, Ro(u)ted by Our Stories, which centres the stories of Indo-Caribbean women and those of marginalised genders in the US across generations. In this piece, we draw from historical material, our lived experiences as descendants of indenture, and a recorded conversation we had between members of our collective about our experiences working to create a community-owned digital archive. We share our visions for creating the archive and questions we have grappled with throughout the process, including our own limitations and reflections on archives as always unfinished and incomplete. Furthermore, we discuss the ways in which we see storytelling as a healing practice, our efforts to remain grounded in the needs and desires of community members and our hopes for the future of the archive. By including multiple voices in this piece, we hope to lift up the collaboration, interdependence and ‘weaving together’ of stories that informs the lens we bring to this work.

Anthropometric cut-offs to identify hyperglycemia in an Afro-Caribbean population: a cross-sectional population-based study from Barbados

IntroductionBody mass index (BMI) and waist circumference (WC) cut-offs associated with hyperglycemia may differ by ethnicity. We investigated the optimal BMI and WC cut-offs for identifying hyperglycemia in the predominantly Afro-Caribbean population of Barbados.Research design and methodsA cross-sectional study of 865 individuals aged ≥25 years without known diabetes or cardiovascular disease was conducted. Hyperglycemia was defined as fasting plasma glucose ≥5.6 mmol/L or hemoglobin A1c ≥5.7% (39 mmol/mol). The Youden index was used to identify the optimal cut-offs from the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves. Further ROC analysis and multivariable log binomial regression were used to compare standard and data-derived cut-offs.ResultsThe prevalence of hyperglycemia was 58.9% (95% CI 54.7% to 63.0%). In women, optimal BMI and WC cut-offs (27 kg/m2 and 87 cm, respectively) performed similarly to standard cut-offs. In men, sensitivities of the optimal cut-offs of BMI ≥24 kg/m2 (72.0%) and WC ≥86 cm (74.0%) were higher than those for standard BMI and WC obesity cut-offs (30.0% and 25%–46%, respectively), although with lower specificity. Hyperglycemia was 70% higher in men above the data-derived WC cut-off (prevalence ratio 95% CI 1.2 to 2.3).ConclusionsWhile BMI and WC cut-offs in Afro-Caribbean women approximate international standards, our findings, consistent with other studies, suggest lowering cut-offs in men may be warranted to improve detection of hyperglycemia. Our findings do, however, require replication in a new data set.