Mental wellbeing among Hispanic female domestic cleaners

Jennifer Ish,David Gimeno Ruiz De Porras,Kristina W Whitworth

doi:10.1186/s13690-020-0390-9

Abstract

BackgroundThe purpose of this study was to examine the mental wellbeing of self-employed, Hispanic female domestic cleaners in San Antonio, Texas.MethodsWe conducted a cross-sectional pilot study and administered a short questionnaire to 56 participants. Mental wellbeing was assessed using The World Health Organization Well-Being Index (WHO-5). We calculated the age-adjusted prevalence of poor mental wellbeing, both overall and stratified by socioeconomic, neighborhood, and health characteristics.ResultsAlmost half of the participants screened positive for poor mental wellbeing (47.3%) with a mean WHO-5 score of 68.9 [standard error (SE) = 3.1]. We observed a high prevalence of poor mental wellbeing among participants with less than a high school education (56.0%), who worked less than 30 h per week (57.0%) and who sometimes or always felt unsafe at her cleaning job (69.1%).ConclusionsFemale domestic cleaners, particularly those who work in the informal sector, are an overburdened and understudied population. This is particularly true regarding their mental wellbeing, which has largely been considered as an afterthought in epidemiologic studies of cleaning workers in general. Our results suggest that this group of domestic cleaners faces several psychosocial stressors, both in and outside of the workplace, and may have a high risk of poor mental health outcomes.

Highlights

The purpose of this study was to examine the mental wellbeing of self-employed, Hispanic female domestic cleaners in San Antonio, Texas
Half of the participants (50.0%) worked a total of 30 or more hours per week, only 28.6% reported working all of these hours as a cleaner
Almost half of the participants screened positive for poor mental wellbeing (47.3%) with a mean The World Health Organization Well-Being Index (WHO-5) score of 68.9

Summary

Introduction

The purpose of this study was to examine the mental wellbeing of self-employed, Hispanic female domestic cleaners in San Antonio, Texas. Workers in the cleaning industry are confronted with many workplace health risks, such as musculoskeletal injury and chemical hazards [1, 2]. Little attention has been given to psychosocial risk factors that negatively affect cleaners’ mental health. There is little to no information on mental health among United States (US)-based domestic cleaners; most research has been conducted among industrial or commercial cleaners and/or domestic cleaners outside of the US, even though nearly one million workers in the US were employed as maids or housekeeping cleaners in 2017 [3]. Only one study has examined mental health among domestic cleaners. Results from a cross-sectional analysis of 335 women in Salvador, Brazil, indicates that being employed as a housemaid is positively associated with anxiety symptoms [10]

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