Measuring Distress Levels of Refugee Women to Enhance Community-Based Psycho-social Interventions.

AGE distribution; HEALTH services accessibility; INTERVIEWING; RESEARCH methodology; QUALITY assurance; QUESTIONNAIRES; PSYCHOLOGY of refugees; RISK assessment; STATISTICAL sampling; SOCIAL isolation; SOCIAL services; PSYCHOLOGICAL stress; PSYCHOLOGY of women; QUALITATIVE research; HEALTH facility translating services; QUANTITATIVE research; SOCIAL support; SOCIOECONOMIC factors; COMMUNICATION barriers; CROSS-sectional method

AFGHANISTAN; MYANMAR; CENTRAL African Republic; CONGO (Democratic Republic); ERITREA; IRAQ; SUDAN; SYRIA; UNITED States

The purpose of this investigation was to gain an understanding of the levels of distress in resettled refugee women as a basis for the development of improved community based interventions to enhance the resettlement experience. A convenience sample of female refugees (n = 23) in a southern US city were interviewed using a socio-demographic questionnaire; the Refugee Health Screener-15 (RHS-15); and semi-structured, exploratory questions. Results showed consistently high levels of distress, indicated by responses to the RHS-15. Women ages 19–25 and over 50 displayed the highest risk. Categories of stressors included a lack of access to health and psycho-social support services, difficulty with communicating in the English language, and social isolation. In addition, women reported that a lack of trained interpreters contributes to reduced access to health and social service, causing further distress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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