Speaking through Diabetes:

Mendenhall, Emily; Seligman, Rebecca; Fernández, Alicia; Jacobs, Elizabeth A.

doi:10.1111/j.1548-1387.2010.01098.x

Cited by 67 publications

(22 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…These findings suggest that in the Ghanaian context it is important to focus on the subjective as well as the collective experience in health and disease. Psychological models of illness experience must be adapted to research and intervention, alongside sociocultural models (Crossley 2000;Mendenhall et al 2010). …”

Section: Convergences and Divergences Between Lay And Biomedical Theomentioning

confidence: 99%

Explanatory models of diabetes in urban poor communities in Accra, Ghana

et al. 2014

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The biomedical model of diabetes was a major source of legitimate information for self-care practices. However, this was understood and applied through a complex framework of cultural theories of chronic disease, the biopsychological impact of everyday illness experience and the disempowering effects of poverty. An integrated biopsychosocial approach is proposed for diabetes intervention in this research community.

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Section: Convergences and Divergences Between Lay And Biomedical Theomentioning

confidence: 99%

Explanatory models of diabetes in urban poor communities in Accra, Ghana

et al. 2014

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“…In our previous ethnographic work, we found both structural violence and interpersonal violence to be major contributors to people’s well-being, in addition to depression specifically (Mendenhall, Seligman et al 2010). This works prompted us to further explore this association in a larger sample, as the relationship of interpersonal abuse and depression is a core concern of psychology and psychiatry, and particularly salient among Mexican-Americans.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…We then examine the association between individuals’ past experiences of social stress with depression. We focus on women specifically because our previous work suggested that women of Mexican descent are more likely to experience the prolonged forms of emotional distress linked with depression compared to men (Mendenhall, Seligman et al 2010). The focus on women is important, as well, due to the disproportionate number of women with diabetes who suffer diabetes complications as a result of poor mental health care.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interpersonal Abuse and Depression Among Mexican Immigrant Women with Type 2 Diabetes

Mendenhall

Jacobs

2011

Cult Med Psychiatry

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Evidence for a bi-directional relationship of depression and type 2 diabetes suggests that social distress plays a role in depression among people with diabetes. In this work, we examine the relationship between subjective distress and depression in 121 first and second generation Mexican immigrant women seeking diabetes care at a safety-net hospital in Chicago. We used a mixed-methods approach including narrative interview, survey, and finger stick blood HbA1c data. Using grounded theory analysis we identified seven life stressors from narrative interviews: interpersonal abuse, stress related to health, family, neighborhood violence, immigration status, and work, and feeling socially detached. Women reported unusually high rates of interpersonal abuse (65%) and disaggregated physical abuse (54%) and sexual abuse (23%). We evaluated depression using CES-D cut-off points of 16 and 24 and assessed rates to be 49% and 34%, respectively. We found that interpersonal abuse was a significant predictor of depression (CESD≥24) in bivariate (OR 3.97; 95% CI 1.58–10.0) and multivariate (OR 5.51; 95% CI 1.85,16.4) logistic regression analyses. These findings suggest that interpersonal abuse functions as an important contributor to depression among low-income Mexican immigrant women and should be recognized and addressed in diabetes care.

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“…Notably, they have described Hispanic patients’ interpretations and causal understandings of diabetes (Baer, et al 2012; Mendenhall, et al 2010; Smith-Morris 2005), and have identified differences between clinician and patient health beliefs which may lead to different management expectations or clinical miscommunication (Chavez 2004; Hunt, et al 1998a; Maupin and Ross 2012; Weller, et al 2012). Others have examined structural barriers to care which may negatively impact the health of Hispanics, such as inadequate translation services, lack of insurance, undocumented immigrant status and poverty (Becker 2004; Castaneda 2010; Castaneda, et al 2010; Durden and Hummer 2006; Handley and Joseph 2008; Hunt and Voogd 2007).…”

Section: Chronic Illness and Marginalized Populationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Changing Diagnostic and Treatment Criteria for Chronic Illness: A Critical Consideration of Their Impact on Low-Income Hispanic Patients

2013

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Low-income Hispanics are often identified as especially at risk for common chronic conditions like diabetes, and targeted for aggressive screening and treatment. Anthropologists and other social scientists have extensively explored barriers and facilitators to chronic illnesses management in minority populations, but have not yet considered the impact of recently lowered diagnostic and treatment thresholds on such groups. In this paper, we critically review recent changes in diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol diagnostic and treatment standards which have dramatically increased the number of people being treated for these conditions. Drawing on an ethnographic study of chronic illness management in two Hispanic-serving clinics in the Midwest, we examine how these new standards are being applied, and consider the resulting health care challenges these Hispanic patients face. Our analysis leads us to question the value of promoting narrowly defined treatment goals, particularly when patients lack reliable access to the health care resources these goals require. While improving the health of low-income Hispanics is a worthwhile goal, it is important to consider whether these efforts may be promoting overdiagnosis and over-treatment, drawing them into an expensive chronic patient role with uncertain benefit. KeywordsHispanics; Pharmaceuticals; Access to Health Care; Diabetes Diagnosis of common chronic conditions has reached epidemic proportions in the U.S, with an estimated 45% of the population having been told they have diabetes, high blood pressure and/or high cholesterol (Cory, et al. 2010). Minority populations have been found to be especially at risk for these conditions (ADA 2011;Carroll, et al. 2012; CDC 2011;Fryar, et al. 2010). Anthropologists and other social scientists have extensively explored the vexing question of the causes and remedies for these disparities, and a good deal of effort is going toward identifying the barriers and facilitators of screening and management for these populations (Aroian, et al. 2012;Ferzacca 2012;Hunt, et al. 1998b Smith-Morris 2005;Weller, et al. 2012). While such efforts have made important contributions to improving access to quality health care, recent changes in clinical diagnostic and treatment guidelines raise new sets of issues for social scientists concerned with chronic illness among marginalized populations. HHS Public AccessAn important, but little considered factor which directly affects the frequency of these diagnoses is that standards for diagnosing and managing such illnesses have changed over time, with systematically lower diagnostic criteria, and the addition of new "pre-disease" categories which are targeted for treatment as well (ADA 2010;Brody 2010;Rosendorff, et al. 2007;Vigersky 2012). This has resulted in millions of people being diagnosed with these conditions, as well as a dramatic expansion of the market for the pharmaceuticals used in their control (Brody and Light 2011;Hunt, et al. 2012; Welch, et al. 2011).Hispanics have lo...

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Speaking through Diabetes:

Cited by 67 publications

References 56 publications

Explanatory models of diabetes in urban poor communities in Accra, Ghana

Explanatory models of diabetes in urban poor communities in Accra, Ghana

Interpersonal Abuse and Depression Among Mexican Immigrant Women with Type 2 Diabetes

Changing Diagnostic and Treatment Criteria for Chronic Illness: A Critical Consideration of Their Impact on Low-Income Hispanic Patients

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