Health issues among Nepalese migrant workers in the Middle East

Background: There is little specific published research which examines the health issues among Nepalese migrant workers in the Middle Eastern countries. In particular, it examines the nature and quality of health care situation, work-related health risks, working condition and living condition in host countries. Aim: This study reviewed the literature about work-related health risks, access to health care, working and living condition of Nepalese migrant workers in the Middle East. Method: The published literature was searched through electronic databases such as CINAHL and Medline using a number of key words and their combinations, and the searching of published books and reports from number of UN agencies. Bibliographies of published articles retrieved from electronic database searches were searched in turn, and relevant articles retrieved for further review. Results: This review of the literature suggested that being a migrant worker involves number of specific risks, including anxiety, depression, tuberculosis and eye injury. In addition to this, work-related accidents and injury, headache, suicide attempts, cardiac arrests, mental illness and high death rates are further evidence of health risks among Asian migrant workers working in the Middle East. Furthermore, these workforces generally have poor working and living conditions. Conclusion: Migrant workers mainly from Nepal and other Asian countries, working in the Middle East face various work-related risks including accidents at work; stress and mental health issues and lifestyle related factors such as illegal drinking. Thus, future research needs to focus attention on minority ethnic groups in the Middle Eastern countries

Alcohol use among the Nepalese in the UK

Rapid Response to: EDITORIALS: Gurprit Pannu, Shahid Zaman, Neeraj Bhala, and Rashid Zaman Alcohol use in South Asians in the UK. BMJ 2009; 339: b402

Health status and health risks of male Nepalese migrants in the Middle East and Malaysia.

This thesis investigates the health status of and health risks to male Nepalese migrant construction and factory workers in the Middle East (West Asia) and Malaysia. After the more seasonal migration to India, the Middle East and Malaysia are the second most popular destinations for Nepalese workers. Differences in the health status and health risks for Nepalese workers associated with the type of work-place, demographic, socio-economic and health characteristics have been investigated in this Ph.D. This study adopted self-reported tools to measure general physical and mental health. These health risks have been measured in terms of perceived health risks and experience of work-related accidents at work. This study uses a mixed-methods approach including questionnaires and in-depth interviews with male Nepalese migrant workers, upon their return to, or prior to their departure from Nepal. Questionnaire data (n=403) estimated the health status of migrant workers and the level of risk to which they are exposed. The interviews (n=20) with a sub-sample of the survey population has offered detailed. Ethical approval granted by the Nepal Health Research Council. Nearly half of the respondents (46%) were aged 20 to 29, most were married (91%), without formal education or only had completed primary education (71%). Most (87%) rated their health as “very good/good or fair”. More than three quarters (79%) perceived their work environment as “very good/good or fair”. Two-thirds (65%) were satisfied with their accommodation abroad. The majority had semi-skilled jobs (69%) and 71% had registered with a doctor; 62% had national insurance; 17% had experienced a work accident. Overall, age was associated with self-reported poor health status as health appeared to worsen with increasing age. Perceived diet, health risks and the work environment were strongly associated with self-reported poor health status. Age, satisfaction with accommodation, work environment and country of work were strongly associated with accidents at work. Country of work and health insurance were significantly associated with not visiting a doctor abroad. The qualitative findings focus on six main themes: (a) push factors of migration; (b) pull factors; (c) living abroad; (d) working abroad; (e) health and health services; and (f) suggestions to improve health and well-being. The in-depth interviews confirmed that Nepalese migrant workers experienced accidents at work, skin problems, heart attacks, mental health issues and even death. In general, employers were perceived not to value the health of migrant workers enough and due to the pressures of work many workers took risks. A significant minority of Nepalese migrant workers working in the Middle East and Malaysia have experienced work-related risks, unsafe and stressful working and living environments and delayed medical treatment. Health and safety at work should focus on encouraging employers to provide safe work environments by giving health and safety training to ensure potential harm reduction. However, the main evidence from this study is that the majority of Nepalese male migrant workers do report a fairly positive experience e.g. with their health, health insurance and access to health services, of living and working abroad. This phenomenon coupled with the poor living and working conditions in Nepal helps explain why workers are willing to work in high risk jobs and in relatively poor working conditions abroad

Health and well-being of Nepalese migrant workers abroad

Purpose- Although South Asia is a growing supplier of migrant labour, there is a paucity of research on the health and wellbeing of male Nepalese migrant workers. This study assessed the health and mental wellbeing of Nepalese construction and factory workers employed in Malaysia, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. Design- A structured questionnaire administered, in and around Nepal’s international airport, to 403 migrants who had worked for over six months in their host countries. Logistic regression was used to investigate factors associated with self-reported health status and mental health symptoms. Findings- Over 13% reported poor or very poor health and nearly a quarter reported mental health issues. Whilst age and exercise were (only) significantly associated with health status, poor work environments and perceived health risks at work were associated with both mental health issues and health status. Research limitations/implications- The study is limited to males only and those working in the factories and the construction industry. To improve migrant health and mental wellbeing, the Government of Nepal and host governments should consider mandatory health insurance and a range of pre-departure and arrival education around general literacy, mental health assessments and workplace health and safety. Originality/value- There have been no known studies on the health and wellbeing of Nepalese migrant construction and factory workers in the Middle East and Malaysia. The strong association between self-reported poor health and perceived work environment is an important issue that policy makers in Nepal and destination countries should address

Risky work: accidents among Nepalese migrant workers in Malaysia, Qatar and Saudi Arabia

Background: Nepal is a growing supplier of migrant labour for factories in Malaysia and building sites in the Middle East. This study assessed the extent of workplace accidents among Nepalese migrant workers in Malaysia, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Methododology: A questionnaire survey was conducted at Nepal’s main international airport with men who returned from working in Malaysia, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. The questionnaire was completed by 403 migrant workers from these three countries. Where possible the questionnaire was self-administered and interview-administered for those migrant workers with poor literacy skills. A logistic regression was conducted to identify factors associated with accidents at work and health risks perceived by migrant workers themselves. Results: One in six (17%) experienced accidents at work in their host country. This proportion is lower than that reported in previous studies of Nepali migrant workers. Age, country of work, doctor registration and perceived standard of work environment and accommodation are significantly associated with accidents at work. Conclusion: To help improve Nepalese men’s health and well-being whilst working abroad, host countries and the Government of Nepal should ensure that migrants hold health insurance. Mandatory pre-departure and arrival health and safety training is also recommended as a way to reduce risks to the health of migrant workers

Coherence as an indicator to discern electromagnetically induced transparency and Autler-Townes splitting

Electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) and Autler-Townes splitting (ATS) are generally characterized and distinguished by the width of the transparency created in the absorption profile of a weak probe in presence of a strong control field. This often leads to ambiguities, as both phenomena yield similar spectroscopic signature. However, an objective method based on the AIC test offers a quantitative way to discern the two regimes when applied on the probe absorption profile. The obtained transition value of control field strength was found to be higher than the value given by pole analysis of the corresponding off-diagonal density matrix element $\rho_{13}$. By contrast, we apply the test on ground state coherence $\rho_{12}$ and the measured coherence quantifier, which yielded a distinct transition point around the predicted value also in presence of noise. Our test accurately captures the transition between the two regimes, indicating that a proper measure of coherence is essential for making such distinctions.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Anxiety and depression among people living in quarantine centers during COVID-19 pandemic: a mixed method study from western Nepal

Background In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, incoming travelers were quarantined at specific centers in Nepal and major checkpoints in Nepal-India border. Nepal adopted a generic public health approaches to control and quarantine returnee migrants, with little attention towards the quality of quarantine facilities and its aftermath, such as the poor mental health of the returnee migrants. The main objective of this study was to explore the status of anxiety and depression, and factors affecting them among returnee migrants living in institutional quarantine centers of western Nepal. Methods A mixed method approach in this study included a quantitative survey and in-depth interviews (IDIs) among respondents in quarantine centers of Karnali province between 21st April and 15th May 2020. Survey questionnaire utilized Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) tools, which were administered among 441 quarantined returnee migrants. IDIs were conducted among 12 participants which included a mix of six quarantined migrants and healthcare workers each from the quarantine centres. Descriptive and inferential analyses were conducted on quantitative data; and thematic analysis was utilized for qualitative data. Results Mild depression (9.1%; 40/441) and anxiety (16.1%; 71/441) was common among respondents followed by moderate depression and anxiety {depression (3.4%; 15/441), anxiety (4.1%; 18/441)} and severe depression and anxiety {depression (1.1%; 5/441), anxiety (0.7%; 3/441)}. Anxiety and depression were independent of their socio-demographic characteristics. Perceived fear of contracting COVID-19, severity and death were prominent among the respondents. Respondents experienced stigma and discrimination in addition to being at the risk of disease and possible loss of employment and financial responsibilities. In addition, poor (quality and access to) health services, and poor living condition at the quarantine centres adversely affected respondents’ mental health. Conclusion Depression and anxiety were high among quarantined population and warrants more research. Institutional quarantine centers of Karnali province of Nepal were in poor conditions which adversely impacted mental health of the respondents. Poor resource allocation for health, hygiene and living conditions can be counterproductive to the population quarantined