141st APHA Annual Meeting

In This section

287074
Prevalence and associated factors of suicidal ideation among community dwelling north korean female defectors in South Korea

Sunday, November 3, 2013

Jin-Young Jeong , Home Visiting Healthcare Service Team, Korea Health Promotion Foundation, Seoul, South Korea
Xianglan Jin , Home Visiting Healthcare Service Team, Korea Health Promotion Foundation, Seoul, South Korea
Sengeun Yi , Home Visiting Healthcare Service Team, Korea Health Promotion Foundation, Seoul, South Korea
Yun-Su Lee , Home Visiting Healthcare Service Team, Korea Health Promotion Foundation, Seoul, South Korea
Jin-ha Lee , Home Visiting Healthcare Service Team, Korea Health Promotion Foundation, Seoul, South Korea
Eun-A Park , Home Visiting Healthcare Service Team, Korea Health Promotion Foundation, Seoul, South Korea
Objective: This study was performed to investigate the prevalence and associated factors of suicidal ideation among community dwelling North Korean female defectors in South Korea. Methods: The study subjects, North Korean female defectors, were 1,440 adults registered in Home visiting health care service provided from public health center in 10 counties of South Korea, from April to December 2011. Nurses of the region visited subjects' home and collected information on immigration factors(years of defectors from North Korea, period of stay in the third country, immigration year into South Korea), past medical history(communicable and non-communicable diseases), life style(smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity), mental health related factors(stress, depressive symptom, suicidal ideation) by using structured questionnaire. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was carried out for the suicidal ideation related factors. Results: The prevalence of suicidal ideation was 10.1%. The age-adjusted prevalence of suicidal ideation according to less 3, 3-6, and 7 years or over duration of stay in the third country were 7.5%, 12.2%, 13.3% and according to 1-3, 4-6, 7 years or over length of residence in South Korea were 7.1%, 12.3%, 14.7%, respectively. After adjusting for potential covariates, suicidal ideation related factors included age(50 or over: odds ratio[OR] 2.42; 95% confidence interval[95% CI]=1.13-5.19 compared with aged 19-39), alcohol consumption(OR 2.39, 95% CI=1.31-4.34), years of residence in South Korea (7 years or more: OR 2.65, 95% CI=1.03-6.82, compared with 1-3 years). Conclusion: This result imply that suicidal ideation of North Korean female defectors was affected years of residence in South Korea.

Learning Areas:
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs

Learning Objectives:
List the prevalence of suicidal ideation according to duration of stay in the third country and South Korea. Identify the associated immigration factors of suicidal ideation.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I, and our team members, have been working in Korean Health Promotion Foundation for years and concerned with health promotion of vulnerable group including North Korean defectors in our country . We want to provide some essential evidence data to make a health care service plan for commnunity dwelling North Korean defectors.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.