Sociopolitical Factors and Mental Health Following the Turkey-Syria Earthquake.
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SUBMITTER: Hou WK
PROVIDER: S-EPMC11096985 | biostudies-literature | 2024 May
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Sociopolitical Factors and Mental Health Following the Turkey-Syria Earthquake.
Hou Wai Kai WK Tao Tiffany Junchen TJ Li Crystal Jingru CJ Wong Evon Lam EL Saral Aysuhan Tuba AT Liu Huinan H Galea Sandro S
JAMA network open 20240501 5
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Project description:ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to describe perceived health problems among disaster responders after the earthquake in eastern Turkey/Syria in February 2023.MethodsA non-probability cross-sectional study was conducted using an online survey.ResultsA total of 525 local (18%) and international disaster responders (81%) participated in the study. Of these responders, 46% reported physical or mental health problems during or after their deployment, 15% required medical care during the mission, and 7% required medical evacuation. The most common health problems during the field mission were feeling scared or unsafe, sleeping problems, and headache. After the mission, fatigue, sleeping problems, and feeling depressed were the most frequently reported health problems. The local responders perceived significantly more health problems than did the international responders. Approximately 11% of the participants could not return to their ordinary work after deployment because of infections or mental health issues.ConclusionsPhysical and mental health problems are commonly perceived by disaster responders and may reduce the effectiveness of disaster response. Raising awareness of health risks among disaster response workers and employers is essential to ensure proper duty of care and should include reparations and medical support during and after disaster response operations.
| S-EPMC11610220 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundDisaster responders are exposed to several physical and mental health risks. This study aimed to describe self-care strategies used by disaster responders after the earthquake in Syria and eastern Turkey in February 2023.MethodsA study specific web-based questionnaire survey was used to collect quantitative and qualitative data according to a convergent mixed methods approach. Data from 252 disaster responders responding to the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria were analyzed using both descriptive and analytical statistics and summative content analysis of free-text answers. Data were collected in March to July, 2023.ResultsThe most used self-care strategies included resting, social support from colleagues in the field, extra intake of food or drink, and intake of medicines. The recovery strategies varied due to previous disaster response experience, indicating that supportive self-care strategies can be developed or learned.ConclusionGiven the extreme conditions and limited possibilities of external support, sufficient self-care is an essential competence among disaster responders. Self-care strategies can be both external processed such as intake of medicines, social support from others, and internal processes such as personal reflection. Providing oneself with self-care activities seems to be a skill developed with increasing experience supported by pre-deployment training. Therefore, to enhance resilience, self-care strategies should be encompassed in pre-disaster response training.
| S-EPMC11488114 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Mental health is one of the most important issues facing disaster survivors. The purpose of this study is to determine the prevalence and correlates of mental health problems in survivors of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami at 6-11 months after the disaster. The questionnaire and notification were sent to the survivors in three municipalities in the Tohoku area of the Northern part of Honshu, Japan's largest island, between September 2011 and February 2012. Questionnaires were sent to 12,772, 11,411, and 18,648 residents in the Yamada, Otsuchi, and Rikuzentakata municipalities, respectively. Residents were asked to bring the completed questionnaires to their health check-ups. A total of 11,124 or (26.0%) of them underwent health check-ups, and 10,198 were enrolled. We excluded 179 for whom a K6 score was missing and two who were both 17 years of age, which left 10,025 study participants (3,934 male and 6,091 female, mean age 61.0 years). K6 was used to measure mental health problems. The respondents were classified into moderate (5-12 of K6) and serious mental health problems (13+). A total of 42.6% of the respondents had moderate or serious mental health problems. Multivariate analysis showed that women were significantly associated with mental health problems. Other variables associated with mental health problems were: younger male, health complaints, severe economic status, relocations, and lack of a social network. An interaction effect of sex and economic status on severe mental health problems was statistically significant. Our findings suggest that mental health problems were prevalent in survivors of the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. For men and women, health complaints, severe economic status, relocations, and lack of social network may be important risk factors of poor mental health. For men, interventions focusing on economic support may be particularly useful in reducing mental health problems after the disaster.
| S-EPMC4109922 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Increased rates of multidrug-resistant microbes have been reported after earthquakes. After the 2023 earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, the number of associated highly drug-resistant pathogens and nosocomial transmission will probably surge in hospitals treating injured patients. It is not too late to act to prevent antimicrobial-resistant infections from compounding these tragedies.
| S-EPMC10202876 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background: On 6 February 2023, an earthquake with a 7.8 magnitude wreaked destruction in northern Syria to add a new emergency status in the country. This study aims to evaluate the mental health status of the Syrian population in the immediate phase of the earthquake.Methods: This nationwide cross-sectional study was conducted in Syria from 17 February to 6 April. Data were collected on socio-demographics, trauma exposure characteristics, and levels of acute stress, depression, and anxiety. The NSESSS Checklist for the APA was used to assess ASD symptoms, PHQ-9 for depression, and GAD-7 for anxiety. Linear mixed-effects models were employed to identify predictive factors while accounting for governorate as a random effect and time elapsed as a fixed factor.Results: The rate of probable ASD symptoms was significant, with 55.3% of participants exhibiting these symptoms, including 10.3% reporting severe-to-extreme levels of severity. Similarly, 71.6% of participants exhibited symptoms of depression and 59.1% showed symptoms of anxiety. Furthermore, 40.4% of participants displayed a co-occurrence of ASD along with anxiety and depression. Linear mixed effects models indicated that symptoms were predicted by female sex, displacement, poor economic status, and a positive mental health history time elapsed, physical trauma, belief in the ongoing risk of earthquakes, feelings of dizziness, recurrent night-time fear arousal, and a continued sensation of seismic activity.Conclusion: This study demonstrated the high rates of symptoms of ASD, anxiety, and depression across the Syrian population during the immediate aftermath of the earthquake. High portions of people may acquire co-occurring symptoms represented by different mental health problems. These findings highlight the need for immediate actions to enhance mental health support in Syria.
| S-EPMC11632941 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundRecent evidence from alcohol and trauma studies suggests that disasters are associated with increases in the consumption of alcohol. The Great East Japan Earthquake and the associated nuclear disaster have continued to affect the mental health of evacuees from Fukushima. This study aimed to extend these findings by examining the relationship between drinking behaviors and the risk of mental illness after the compound disaster.MethodsWe conducted the Mental Health and Lifestyle Survey with 56,543 evacuees. Kessler's K6 was used to assess the risk of mental illness, and logistic regression models were applied to analyze how drinking behavior patterns influence the risk of serious mental illness after adjustment for confounding variables.ResultsLogistic regression analysis evidenced that beginning heavy and light drinkers had the highest and a higher risk of serious mental illness, respectively. Individuals who were nondrinkers pre- and postdisaster had the lowest proportional risk of mental illness. Abstainers also had some risk to their mental health after the compound disaster.ConclusionsThe results of this study highlight that beginning drinkers have a high risk of serious mental illness. Thus, mental health professionals should pay attention to the drinking behaviors of evacuees, which might predict increased risk of serious mental illness and consequently indicate a need for psychological intervention.
| S-EPMC5067661 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundAfter the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, the large number of persons with major limb damage, amputations, shock, trauma, anxiety and depression placed a severe strain on mental health (MH) services.PurposeThis qualitative study describes the impact and acceptability of a Mental Health Training Program (MHTP) implemented in the north of Haiti after the earthquake.MethodsA total of 113 healthcare workers (HCWs) participated in a training program designed to build local MH care capacity. The training curriculum draws on literature related to MH and the impact of the Haiti earthquake. Two focus groups were conducted with 16 HCWs; discussions centred on the personal and professional impact and acceptability of the training program.DiscussionResults demonstrated that the MHTP changed the HCWs' perceptions about MH issues and provided them with the knowledge and skills to respond to growing community MH needs. Acceptability of the MHTP was related to the content covered, to the delivery mode of the content and to the cultural appropriateness of the program.ConclusionsDisasters of different types will continue to occur and to impact MH in communities around the world. MH training will allow nurses to quickly and effectively respond to disasters. A coordinated emergency plan that is subject to frequent review, rehearsal and evaluation is also essential.
| S-EPMC3933925 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundTurkey hosts an estimated 3.7 million Syrian refugees. Syrian refugees have access to free primary care provided through Refugee Health Centers(RHC). We aimed to determine factors that influence patient satisfaction in refugee health centers.MethodsThe study was a cross-sectional quantitative study. A patient survey was administered among 4548 patients attending services in selected 16 provinces in Turkey. A quantitative questionnaire was used to collect information on patient satisfaction and experience in the healthcare facility. Information on "overall satisfaction with health services" was collected on a 5-point Likert scale and dichotomized for analysis. Logistic regression was conducted to identify factors that influenced patient satisfaction.ResultsWe found that 78.2% of the participants were satisfied with the health services they received. Factors related to service quality and communication were significant determinants of patient satisfaction. The strongest predictors of satisfaction were having a sufficient consultation time (AOR: 2.37; 95% CI: 1.76-3.21; p< 0.0001), receiving a comprehensive examination (AOR: 2.01; 95% CI: 1.49-2.70; p < 0.0001) and being treated with respect by the nurse (AOR: 2.08; 95% CI: 1.52-2.85; p< 0.0001).ConclusionProviding integrated, culturally and linguistically sensitive health services is important in refugee settings. The quality of service and communication with patients influence patient satisfaction in refugee health centers. As such, improvements in aspects such as consultation time and the quality of physician-patient interaction are recommended for patient satisfaction.
| S-EPMC9480993 | biostudies-literature
Project description:We have been examining the Comprehensive Health Check of the Fukushima Health Management Survey of residents of 13 municipalities who were forced by the government to evacuate due to the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake (GEJE). Our findings showed that evacuation is a risk factor for polycythemia and suggested that experiencing an unprecedented disaster and exposure to chronic stress due to evacuation might be a cause of polycythemia.We analyzed the relationship between the prevalence of polycythemia and the following factors observed in the Mental Health and Lifestyle Survey in an observational study with a cross-sectional design: traumatic symptoms, depression status, socioeconomic factors such as residential environment, and working situation after the GEJE. Target population of the survey included men and women who were at least 15 years of age and who lived in the evacuation zones specified by the government. Participants analyzed consisted of 29,474 persons (12,379 men and 16,888 women) who had participated in both the 2011 Comprehensive Health Check and Mental Health and Lifestyle Survey from June 2011 through March 2012.The prevalence of polycythemia was not associated with mental states associated with traumatic symptoms (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Checklist Scale ≥ 44) and depression status (Kessler 6-item Scale ≥ 13). Furthermore, multivariate analysis showed that there was a tendency for males to develop polycythemia, with characteristics such as being aged 65 years and older, highly educated, obese (body mass index ≥ 25), hypertensive, diabetic, having liver dysfunction, and a smoker being significantly related to the prevalence of polycythemia.Our findings conclusively demonstrated that polycythemia was not significantly related to psychological factors, but was significantly related to the onset of lifestyle-related disease after the GEJE.
| S-EPMC6946557 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundOn 15 March 2019, a white supremacist terrorist attacked two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. Fifty-one people were killed and another 40 sustained non-fatal gunshot injuries.AimsTo examine the mental health of the Muslim community, and individual and exposure-related factors associated with mental health outcomes.MethodThis is the baseline analysis of a longitudinal study of adults from the Muslim community interviewed 11-32 months after the shootings. It included a diagnostic interview (MINI), measures of sociodemographic factors, prior mental health, prior traumatic events, exposure in the attacks, discrimination, life stressors, social support and religious coping. Logistic regression models examined associations with mental health outcomes.ResultsThe sample comprised 189 participants (mean age 41 (s.d. = 13); 60% female), and included: bereaved, 17% (n = 32); injured survivors 12% (n = 22); non-injured survivors, 19% (n = 36); family members of survivors, 35% (n = 67); and community members without the above exposures, 39% (n = 74). Overall, 61% had at least one mental disorder since the attacks. Those bereaved (P < 0.01, odds ratio 4.28, 95% CI 1.75-10.49) and survivors, whether injured (P < 0.001, odds ratio 18.08, 95% CI 4.70-69.60) or not (P < 0.01, odds ratio 5.26, 95% CI 1.99-13.89), had greater odds of post-traumatic stress disorder. Those bereaved (P < 0.001, odds ratio 5.79, 95% CI 2.49-13.46) or injured (P = 0.04, odds ratio 4.43, 95% CI 1.07-18.28) had greater odds of depression.ConclusionsDespite unique features of this attack on a Muslim population, findings accord with previous studies. They suggest generalisability of psychopathology after terror attacks, and that being bereaved or directly experiencing such events is associated with adverse mental health outcomes.Trial registration numberThe study is registered on the Australian NZ Clinical Trials Registry (ACTRN12620000909921).
| S-EPMC11698172 | biostudies-literature