Perception of stress in Laotian migrant workers in Thailand

Globalization and the movement of workers across borders in search of a better life or employment are presenting healthcare systems and researchers with problems of increasing complexity. This study focused on how migrant workers in Thailand from the Lao People’s Democratic Republic conceptualized their stress and stressing factors. Participant observation, in-depth interviews, and field notes were employed in the study, which analyzed data from seventy subjects through qualitative content analysis. The migrant workers in this sample perceived stress as a state of being unable to fulfill their preferences or expectations revolving around issues of: living with poverty, employment, loneliness, poor relationships, competition in the workplace combined with job uncertainty, and invisibility. To provide care for the minority migrant workers, nurses need to focus on identifying how these users perceive stress, and urgent action and further research are needed

World Region of Origin and Common Mental Disorders Among Migrant Women in Spain

Migration can affect the mental health of migrants. This cross-sectional study has two objectives: (1) to compare the prevalence of common mental disorder (CMD) between migrants (n = 458) living in Granada (Spain) and Spanish-born women (n = 448); (2) within migrants, to analyse the associations of world region of origin, other sociodemographic factors and post-migration features with the presence of CMD. Participants answered a questionnaire, including sociodemographic characteristics, post-migration features and CMD that was measured by Kessler K6-scale. Logistic regression analyses showed that CMD (K6 ≥ 13) was significantly higher among migrants than Spaniards. Compared with Spaniards, the odds of CMD were 3.6 [95 % confidence intervals (CI) 2.1–6.0] and 2.9 (CI 1.6–5.3), respectively, for Latin Americans and for Moroccan and other African women. Among migrants, Latin Americans as opposed to the reference group (migrants from other countries), had higher probability of CMD (OR 2.3, CI 1.1–4.9). This study supports the hypothesis that migration leads to mental distress. Consideration of world region of origin may clarify the differences observed in mental health across different migrant groups.</p