Citation

Kumparatana P, Cournos F, Terlikbayeva A, Rozentalb Y, Gilbert L. Int. J. Public Health 2017; 62(5): 541-550.

Affiliation

School of Social Work, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s00038-017-0944-y

PMID

28233019

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: To determine factors associated with SRH among migrant workers in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

METHODS: In 2007, 805 vendors were screened. Approximately half were eligible (n =450), defined as at least 18 years old, a worker/owner in a randomly selected stall, having traveled 2 + hours outside of Almaty within the past year, and being an internal/external migrant. 28 non-migrants were excluded, leaving 422 participants. Logistic regression was used to examine the relationship between SRH, mental health, and psychosocial problems.

RESULTS: Approximately 46% reported having poor or fair SRH. Clinical depression (OR 0.859, 95% CI 0.342-2.154), alcohol problems (OR 1.169, 95% CI 0.527-2.593), and legal status (OR 0.995, 95% CI 0.806-1.229) were not significantly associated with SRH, nor was exposure to interpersonal violence among women (OR 1.554, 95% CI 0.703-3.435). After adjusting for key variables, only ethnicity and social support were found to be significantly protective against poor or fair SRH.

CONCLUSIONS: SRH was not a comprehensive health measure for these Central Asian migrant workers. More specific questions are needed to identify mental illness and interpersonal violence.

Language: en

Keywords

Central Asia; Kazakhstan; Migrant workers; Self-rated health (SRH)