Racism and Health-Related Quality of Life in Pediatric Sickle Cell Disease: Roles of Depression and Support

Introductions Sickle cell disease (SCD) is the most commonly inherited blood disorder in the United States, and it predominately affects the Black community. SCD is characterized by a number of symptoms, including unpredictable pain, which can lead to hospitalizations. Data indicate that people with SCD experience racism and ample data indicate that racism predicts depressive symptoms and impaired health-related quality of life (HRQOL). In contrast, research suggests that social support might buffer the impact of racism on depression. The aim of this study was to explore associations among perceived racism, depressive symptoms, and HRQOL in adolescents with SCD. Consistent with the literature, it was predicted that perceived racism would predict HRQOL through depression, and social support would moderate the negative impact of racism on depression. Methods In a cross-sectional design, 75 inpatient adolescents with SCD completed measures of perceived racism, depressive symptoms, HRQOL, and social support. Results This results indicated a moderated mediation model with greater perceived racism predicting more depressive symptoms, which in turn related to poorer HRQOL; greater access to social support from individuals with SCD strengthened the perceived racism—depressive symptom association. Conclusions Findings suggest a model for how racism, depressive symptoms, HRQOL, and social support might interact in hospitalized adolescents with SCD. Longitudinal or experimental designs are needed to substantiate directionality among these variables. Results highlight several areas for future research and clinical avenues to improve the welfare of youth with SCD.

How American Media Affects Perceived Racism in Canada

This study aims to identify how perceptions of racism in Canada are influenced by the consumption of American media. The current study hypothesized that: 1) individuals exposed to an American news story regarding racial discrimination (Group 1) would have a more favourable evaluation of Canada than those who were not exposed to the story (Group 2); 2) that participants who were people of colour (PoC) would have no significant differences in scores between the two groups, and; 3) that Canadians would overall rate Canada more favourably than America, but that this difference would be more pronounced in Group 1. Seventy-two (72) participants contributed data by completing one of two versions of a questionnaire, which had questions regarding satisfaction of one’s life in Canada, perceived ethnic diversity or acceptance in Canada, perceived racism in Canada, and a comparison between Canada and the USA. One version opened with a short vignette describing an example of racism that had recently occurred in America (Group 1; 47 questions), while the other version did not (Group 2; 46 questions). A 2x2x2 analysis of the data revealed that PoC and those with a different national affiliation exhibited lower scores of perceived diversity in Group 1 than Group 2. Caucasian participants evaluated Canada more favourably than America in Group 1, whereas PoC rated Canada better in Group 2. Limitations of this study included sample size, diversity of the sample, reliability of the scales, and self-selection/self-report biases. Future research should aim to rectify these limitations and further explore the significant differences present in this study.

Perceived racial discrimination and risk of insomnia among middle-aged and elderly Black women

Study Objective To assess whether perceived racial discrimination is associated with insomnia among Black women. Methods Data on everyday and lifetime racism and insomnia symptoms were collected from questionnaires administered in the Black Women’s Health Study, an ongoing prospective cohort of Black women recruited in 1995 from across the United States. In 2009, participants completed five questions on the frequency of discriminatory practices in daily life (everyday racism) and six questions on ever experiencing unfair treatment in key institutional contexts (lifetime racism). In 2015, the Insomnia Severity Index was used to assess insomnia symptoms. We estimated odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals for associations of racism with insomnia, using multivariable logistic regression models adjusted for potential confounders. Results The 26 139 participants in the analytic sample were 40–90 years old (median = 57 years, SD = 9.6 years). Higher levels of everyday racism and lifetime racism were positively associated with subthreshold (ptrend < .01) and clinical insomnia (ptrend < .01). Results remained unchanged after further adjustment for sleep duration and shift work. Conclusions Higher levels of perceived racism were associated with increased odds of insomnia among middle-aged and elderly Black women. Thus, perceived racism may contribute to multiple racial health disparities resulting from insomnia. Helping minority populations cope with their experiences of discrimination may decrease the significant public health impact of sleep disruption and subsequent diagnoses.