Archives of Women's Mental Health
Volume 20, Issue 3, 2017, Pages 439-447

Postpartum mental health of immigrant mothers by region of origin, time since immigration, and refugee status: a population-based study (Article)

Vigod S.N.* , Bagadia A.J. , Hussain-Shamsy N. , Fung K. , Sultana A. , Dennis C.-L.E.
  • a Women’s College Hospital and Research Institute, 76 Grenville Street, Toronto, ON, Canada, University of Toronto, 27 King’s College Circle, Toronto, ON, Canada, Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, Veterans Hill Trail, 2075 Bayview Avenue G1 06, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • b Women’s College Hospital and Research Institute, 76 Grenville Street, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • c Women’s College Hospital and Research Institute, 76 Grenville Street, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • d Women’s College Hospital and Research Institute, 76 Grenville Street, Toronto, ON, Canada, Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, Veterans Hill Trail, 2075 Bayview Avenue G1 06, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • e University of Toronto, 27 King’s College Circle, Toronto, ON, Canada
  • f Women’s College Hospital and Research Institute, 76 Grenville Street, Toronto, ON, Canada, University of Toronto, 27 King’s College Circle, Toronto, ON, Canada

Abstract

Immigrant women are at high risk for postpartum mental disorders. The purpose of this study was to understand how rates of postpartum mental health contact differ among immigrant women by region of origin, time since immigration, and refugee status. We conducted a population-based cohort study of immigrant mothers in Ontario, Canada, with children born from 2008 to 2012 (N = 123,231). We compared risk for mental health contact (outpatient, emergency department, inpatient hospitalization) in the first postpartum year by region of origin, time since immigration, and refugee status, generating adjusted odds ratios (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI). Immigrants from North Africa and the Middle East were more likely to have outpatient mental health contact than a referent group of immigrants from North America or Europe (aOR 1.07, 95% CI 1.01–1.14); those from East Asia and the Pacific, Southern Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa were less likely (0.64, 0.61–0.68; 0.78, 0.74–0.83; 0.88, 0.81–0.94). Refugees were more likely to have contact than non-refugees (1.10, 1.04–1.15); those in Canada <5 years were less likely than longer-term immigrants (0.83, 0.79–0.87). Refugees were more likely to have an emergency department visit (1.81, 1.50–2.17) and a psychiatric hospitalization than non-refugees (1.78, 1.31–2.42). These findings have implications for targeted postpartum mental health service delivery targeting certain immigrant groups and particularly refugees. © 2017, Springer-Verlag Wien.

Author Keywords

Mental health Postpartum period Immigration Health services

Index Keywords

immigrant hospital patient hospitalization refugee mental health service Europe mental health human risk assessment Refugees immigration Cohort Studies Ethnic Groups statistics and numerical data ethnic group time factor priority journal Time Factors comparative study outpatient emergency ward ethnology Humans migrant psychology Emigrants and Immigrants female Socioeconomic Factors socioeconomics Mothers Article health care utilization Ontario mother adult migration cohort analysis Emigration and Immigration postnatal depression Depression, Postpartum puerperium health care delivery Child
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85017144148&doi=10.1007%2fs00737-017-0721-1&partnerID=40&md5=6eabadbec51e48b1be3abf2b33202c4e
DOI: 10.1007/s00737-017-0721-1
ISSN: 14341816
Cited by: 7
Original Language: English