Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Homeless Migrant Mothers of the Paris Region Shelters.

Mathilde Roze,Cécile Vuillermoz,Thierry Baubet,Stéphanie Vandentorren,Dalila Rezzoug,Maria Melchior

doi:10.3390/ijerph17134908

Abstract

Migrant women are disproportionately more likely to experience traumatic events in their country of origin, during migration and after arriving in the host country. Homeless women are more likely to be exposed to multiple victimizations in childhood (emotional or physical maltreatment) and in adulthood (sexual abuse, street victimization). This study’s objective was to describe the factors associated with the likelihood of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among homeless migrant mothers in the Paris region. Face-to-face interviews were conducted by bilingual psychologists and interviewers in a representative sample of homeless families in the Paris region. PTSD was ascertained using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) (n = 691 mothers). We studied PTSD in mothers using weighted Poisson regression. Homeless migrant mothers had high levels of PTSD (18.9%) in the 12 months preceding the study. In multivariate analysis, PTSD was associated with departure from the country of origin because of violence (PR = 1.45 95% CI 1.03; 2.04), depression in the preceding 12 months (PR = 1.82 95% CI 1.20; 2.76), and residential instability (PR = 1.93 95% CI 1.27; 2.93). Homeless migrant mothers have high levels of traumatic events and PTSD. Improvements in screening for depression and PTSD and access to appropriate medical care are essential for this vulnerable group.

Highlights

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that can arise after an individual has experienced a severe traumatic event, such as the threat of injury or death [1]
Most studies to date have explored whether homeless people have had an elevated level of exposure to traumatic events and cumulate risk factors which brought on PTSD [6,7,8], but less is known about the role of homelessness itself as a traumatic experience that leads to exposure to factors predicting PTSD
Our study shows that receiving assistance from an non-governmental organizations (NGOs), friends, or family was not associated with PTSD

Summary

Introduction

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that can arise after an individual has experienced a severe traumatic event, such as the threat of injury or death (e.g., a car crash, a natural disaster, physical aggression, or rape) [1]. PTSD in homeless populations is very prevalent [3], in women, with 25.7% in 123 homeless women included in the French Housing First Program [4] suffering from PTSD, versus almost 7% in women of the overall population in France in 2003 [5]. Most studies to date have explored whether homeless people have had an elevated level of exposure to traumatic events and cumulate risk factors which brought on PTSD (e.g., witnessing or being the victim of an attack, sexual assault) [6,7,8], but less is known about the role of homelessness itself as a traumatic experience that leads to exposure to factors predicting PTSD. Public Health 2020, 17, 4908; doi:10.3390/ijerph17134908 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph

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