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- Title
Predisplacement Abuse and Postdisplacement Factors Associated With Mental Health Symptoms After Forced Migration Among Rohingya Refugees in Bangladesh.
- Authors
Hossain, Ahmed; Baten, Redwan Bin Abdul; Sultana, Zeeba Zahra; Rahman, Taifur; Adnan, Mirza Asif; Hossain, Moynul; Khan, Taifur Aziz; Uddin, Muzakkir Kamar
- Abstract
Key Points: Question: What is the prevalence of severe mental health symptoms among Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh? Findings: This cross-sectional study including 1184 Rohingya refugees found that a high prevalence of severe mental health symptoms exists in the Rohingya population even after 2 years of displacement. In Rohingya camp settings, low prevalence of traumatic distress was associated with employment opportunities and adequate humanitarian support; severe mental health symptoms were commonly found in adults who had experienced physical abuse or both physical and sexual abuse in Myanmar. Meaning: The risk of mental illness may be high for the Rohingya population; health care networks in Rohingya camp settings should ensure adequate mental health services to protect Rohingya adults from developing mental illness. Importance: At the end of August 2017, violence and persecution in Myanmar's Rakhine state forced nearly 1 million Rohingyas to flee to Bangladesh for their lives and seek shelter. Many refugees, after their traumatic experiences leaving Myanmar, experience mental health problems. Objectives: To identify the prevalence of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSSs) among displaced Rohingya adults and investigate the association of predisplacement abuse and postdisplacement factors with PTSSs. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cross-sectional analysis from a household survey of 1184 Rohingya adults aged 18 years or older was conducted in 8 refugee camps within Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, from September 17, 2019, to January 11, 2020. Main Outcomes and Measures: The Impact of Event Scale–Revised was used to assess PTSSs. The possible range of scores was 0 to 88; moderate PTSSs were classified using a score cutoff of 33 to 38 and severe PTSSs were classified using a score cutoff of 39 and above. Adjusted prevalence ratios (aPRs) were estimated using a multivariable logistic regression model adjusted for potential confounders. Results: Of 1184 participants (625 men [52.8%]; mean [SD] age, 35.1 [13.4] years), 552 (46.6%) had severe PTSSs, and 274 (23.1%) had moderate PTSSs. In Bangladesh, refugees are not legally permitted to work in refugees camps, but 276 of 1165 respondents (23.7%) had temporary paid jobs. Moreover, 113 of the 276 working participants (40.9%) and 430 of the 889 nonworking participants (48.4%) reported severe PTSSs. A total of 496 respondents (41.9%) reported inadequate humanitarian aid for their families, and among them, 281 (56.7%) reported severe PTSSs. A total of 136 of 1177 respondents (11.6%) experienced both physical and sexual abuse in Myanmar, and 87 (64.0%) of them had severe PTSSs. The multivariable analysis showed a reduced risk of PTSSs with appropriate humanitarian assistance (aPR, 0.50; CI, 0.38-0.65). Experiencing both physical and sexual abuse before displacement had a significant association with PTSSs (aPR, 2.09; CI, 1.41-3.07). Opportunities for paid employment in refugee camps also reduced the risks of PTSSs (aPR, 0.69; CI, 0.52-0.91). Conclusions and Relevance: The high prevalence of self-reported severe PTSSs in Rohingya refugees suggests that the trauma of displacement and the violent consequences of military crackdowns still exist. In the Rohingya camp settings of Bangladesh, employment opportunity and sufficient humanitarian aid hold promise as potential interventions to reduce the high prevalence of severe PTSSs. Mental health symptoms were more prevalent in adults who experienced physical abuse or physical and sexual abuse before displacement. This cross-sectional study examines the prevalence of posttraumatic stress symptoms among displaced Rohingya adults and investigates the association of predisplacement abuse and postdisplacement factors with posttraumatic stress symptoms.
- Subjects
BANGLADESH; CRIME &; psychology; ROHINGYA (Burmese people); CONFIDENCE intervals; PSYCHOLOGY of refugees; CROSS-sectional method; MULTIVARIATE analysis; POST-traumatic stress disorder; RISK assessment; DESCRIPTIVE statistics; DATA analysis software; LOGISTIC regression analysis; MENTAL illness
- Publication
JAMA Network Open, 2021, Vol 4, Issue 3, pe211801
- ISSN
2574-3805
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.1801