Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #112340

Michele Yehieli, DrPH and Mark Grey, PhD. Iowa Project EXPORT Center of Excellence on Health Disparities, University of Northern Iowa, 220 WRC, Cedar Falls, IA 50614-0241, 319 273-7965, michele.yehieli@uni.edu

Many rural communities in the United States are currently experiencing rapid ethnic diversification. These newcomers are arriving from Latin America, Eastern Europe, and Africa to settle in small towns with agricultural or manufacturing plants. Public health workers in these towns are often poorly prepared to recognize or address the mental health conditions that can occur among newcomer populations in rural communities. To this end, the Community Health Initiative Committee in Postville, Iowa, partnered with the Iowa Project EXPORT Center of Excellence on Health Disparities at the University of Northern Iowa, to conduct a mental health assessment of newcomers in northeast Iowa who were recruited to work in a large, local Kosher meatpacking plant. A total of 150 Latinos, Hassidic Jews, and Eastern European immigrants were interviewed in their native languages using a mental health questionnaire that was included as part of a community health assessment. Levels of depression, loneliness, anxiety, acculturation stress, and other mental health issues were explored. Results indicated that there were significant differences in self-reported mental health states among these three populations. In all, Hassidic Jews reported the fewest mental health challenges, while the Russians and other Eastern Europeans appeared to have the most difficult time adjusting to their new environment. The data collected from this survey were ultimately utilized by local health agencies to develop culturally appropriate mental health education and outreach projects for these immigrant populations.

Learning Objectives:

• To understand the unique mental health challenges experienced by newcomers migrating to rural communities in the United States, and to recognize the importance of addressing acculturation stress in a culturally appropriate manner.

Keywords: Mental Health, Immigrants

Related Web page: www.iowahealthdisparities.org

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.