Common mental disorders among seasonal migrant farmworkers in Northwest Ethiopia

Gelaye, Kassahun Alemu; Sisay, Malede Mequanent; Akalu, Temesgen Yihunie; Teshome, Destaw Fetene; Wolde, Haileab Fekadu; Demissie, Getu Debalkie; Wami, Sintayehu Daba; Azale, Telake; Ayele, Tadesse Awoke

doi:10.1186/s12888-021-03068-7

Cited by 4 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 35 publications

(41 reference statements)

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“…This happens because many farmers have temporary contracts or do not have formal contracts 29. Similar results have been found across seasonal farmers in Ethiopia, where a higher prevalence of common mental disorders was reported 30…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

“…29 Similar results have been found across seasonal farmers in Ethiopia, where a higher prevalence of common mental disorders was reported . 30 In our study, symptoms of mental disorders increased with additional hours of excessive work. This finding is consistent with the North American study reported by Kearney et al, where 60% of farmers who worked >40 hours per week reported being very stressed.…”

Section: Open Accesssupporting

confidence: 52%

“…29 Similar results have been found across seasonal farmers in Ethiopia, where a higher prevalence of common mental disorders was reported. 30 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mental health among the sugarcane industry farmers and non-farmers in Peru: a cross-sectional study on occupational health

et al. 2022

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ObjectiveDescribe the occupational characteristics of farmer and non-farmer workers and investigate critical occupational risk factors for mental disorders in sugarcane farmers in Peru.MethodWe conducted a cross-sectional study with occupational health and safety focus among farmers and non-farmers. Mental disorder symptoms were evaluated through the local validated version of the 12-Item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12). We explored the association between mental disorder symptoms, work conditions and known occupational risk factors (weekly working hours, pesticide exposures, heat stress and heavy workload). Negative binomial regression models were fitted, and 95% CIs were calculated.ResultsWe assessed 281 workers between December 2019 and February 2020. One hundred and six (37.7%) respondents identified themselves as farmworkers. The mean GHQ-12 scores for farmers and non-farmers were 3.1 and 1.3, respectively. In the fully adjusted multivariable model, mental disorder symptom counts among farmers were more than twice as high as those of non-farmers (β: 2.11; 95% CI: 1.48 to 3.01). The heavy workload increased the mean number of mental disorder symptoms by 68% (95% CI: 21% to 133%), and each additional working hour per day increased the mean number of mental disorder symptoms by 13% (95% CI: 1% to 25%).ConclusionFarmers have higher mental disorder symptoms than non-farmers. A heavy workload and more working hours per day are independently associated with more mental disorder symptoms. Our findings highlight the importance of including mental health within occupational programmes and early interventions tailored to sugarcane industrial mill workers in the Latin American context.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Section: Open Accesssupporting

confidence: 52%

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Mental health among the sugarcane industry farmers and non-farmers in Peru: a cross-sectional study on occupational health

et al. 2022

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“…Furthermore, low agricultural incomes, and high income volatility aggravates the already poor mental health of agrarian workers. Among many, financial burden and farm losses have been one of the crucial predictors of poor mental health and cases of suicide among the agrarian workforce [18,[20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30]. Therefore, we hypothesize that insurance can have a significant role in providing adequate protection to agricultural workers in adverse income situations, which can subsequently prevent development of mental illness or further deterioration of mental health conditions of the agrarian workers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Insurance as an instrument of financial security in addressing mental illness among agricultural workers in the LMICs

Agarwal

Gupta

Singh

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Introduction: Agriculture is a high-risk occupation globally, with risk intensities being higher in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). Formal risk-mitigation instruments are absent in LMICs. Prevalence of financial insecurity often acts as a prominent stressor predisposing to various mental illnesses among the agrarian workers in LMICs. Aims: We review the existing scientific evidence from LMICs on the role of insurance in improving the mental health of rural workers. Our research identifies the different insurance interventions available for agrarian or rural workers in LMICs, and review their effectiveness - overall and across sub-groups in preventing the development of mental illnesses or reducing existing ones. Methodology: Our review included both peer and non-peer-reviewed literature. We involved people with lived experience (PWLE) that included farmers, workers, NGOs and health workers, policy researchers etc. with experiences from India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Peru, and South Africa. Inputs from PWLE helped in defining our key concepts for the study and in curating a list of keywords for literature search. We identified 79 articles of which we reviewed 47 articles that reported effectiveness of financial interventions, primarily Cash transfer (CT), Pension and Health insurance, Workfare and Microfinance on the mental health of rural workers in LMICs. A cash transfer (CT) is a direct transfer payment of money to an eligible person. Unlike Unconditional CT (UCT), conditional CT (CCT) are conditional upon completing specific actions beyond being eligible for CT such as sending children to school or making regular health visits. Microfinance is provision of banking service to individuals or groups who otherwise would have no access to financial services. Workfare program require participants to perform usually public-service work to receive payment. Insights from PWLE: We learned from PWLE that it is hard to distinguish between self and wage employment as workers are engaged in multiple livelihood activities, and similarly between rural and urban workers due to seasonal migration. Workers continue to work in old age as there is no concept of retirement. PWLE reported that public assistance program whether they supplement income or consumption are beneficial. Access to low cost credit enhances financial security as most workers operate in highly credit-constrained environments. Key findings: (i) Pension and health insurance led to a significant reduction in symptoms of depression and anxiety among workers, particularly among the elderly. (ii) Workfare participation led to a reduction in depression among women by increasing income security. However, in addition to financial security, non-pecuniary benefits of employment were also observed among the unemployed refugee men. (iii) CT led to a reduction in suicides among farmers during adverse income shocks, and in general improved mental health of recipients. However, when the recipients perceived CT as stigmatizing or perceived the compliance condition (as in CCT) as an additional burden, the effects of CT on mental health were negative. (iv) Microfinance schemes had mixed effects on mental health of the participants, primarily women. While it led to a reduction in depression and anxiety, loan repayment was often reported to be stressful. Recommendation for practice: Mental health should be incorporated as an additional welfare parameter in the cost-benefit analysis of policy evaluation as evidence suggest that higher income or consumption do not necessarily improve mental health. While pension and health insurance can bring in positive changes in mental health of workers, CT and microfinance schemes are no silver bullets for improving psychological well-being. CT and microfinance interventions can have an adverse effect on mental health of recipients which depend upon their design and delivery. Recommendation for research: We believe that lack of mental health data largely inhibits evidence-based research on mental health. For example, we did not find any study that evaluated agricultural insurance or price support scheme in spite of these having existed in LMICs for some time now. Evaluation of existing insurance interventions on parameters of mental health is only possible if data collection on mental health variables are encouraged.

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“…[3] Because of the hard work done under difficult conditions, farming is considered as physical and mental health hazards. [4] Work-related disorders refer to problems that are also known as cumulative trauma disorder, repetitive strain injury, or overuse syndromes. [5] Agriculture workers are the agricultural sector's most important pillars of growth and development.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Problems Faced by the Agricultural Workers at Faizabad District: An Analytical Study

Mohini

Kiran

Santoshi

2022

APJHS

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Background: Agriculture workers are defined as workers who works in the field for the wages. They generate almost all of the food that we consume. Their health and safety have a direct impact on the growth of agricultural production. Aim: This study focused on risk factors and problems faced by agricultural workers. Materials and Methods: The present study included 150 agricultural workers. The study sample was selected using random sampling procedure in the Balramau area of Faizabad district. Data were collected using a self-structured interview schedule. Results: The study clearly revealed that maximum problems were faced by the respondents due to irrigation, fertilizers or pesticides, thresher or tractor causes hearing loss, sharp objects occurred cuts and injuries, breathing problems due to soil, and electrocution. Female agricultural workers faced more problems as compared to male agricultural workers. Conclusion: Agricultural workers do not have any regular employment, health security, job security, stable income, or social security protection. The analysis underlines that appropriate safety and health management may be feasible by empowering local infrastructure through government policies.

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Common mental disorders among seasonal migrant farmworkers in Northwest Ethiopia

Cited by 4 publications

References 35 publications

Mental health among the sugarcane industry farmers and non-farmers in Peru: a cross-sectional study on occupational health

Mental health among the sugarcane industry farmers and non-farmers in Peru: a cross-sectional study on occupational health

Insurance as an instrument of financial security in addressing mental illness among agricultural workers in the LMICs

Problems Faced by the Agricultural Workers at Faizabad District: An Analytical Study

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