Wilson Fernando A, Stimpson Jim P, Ortega Alexander N
Matheson Center for Health Care Studies, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, United States of America.
Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America.
PLOS Glob Public Health. 2023 Aug 14;3(8):e0002232. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0002232. eCollection 2023.
Although numerous studies have found that Latine immigrants to the United States (US) have better health outcomes on average than persons born in the US, studies of persons living in Mexico have found that undocumented immigrants have worse health, especially those that were deported, compared to Mexican citizens that never migrated or migrated with authorization. However, the health outcomes of Mexican migrants using a smuggler to cross the US-Mexico border is a gap in the literature. We hypothesized that undocumented immigrant adults who used a smuggler to cross the US-Mexico border would be more likely to report mental health problems upon return to Mexico compared with undocumented immigrant adults that did not use a smuggler. We analyzed nationally representative, cross-sectional survey data of 1,563 undocumented immigrants currently living in Mexico. Most undocumented immigrants in the sample (87%) used a smuggler. Use of a smuggler by undocumented immigrant adults was associated with a 4.7% higher prevalence of emotional or psychiatric problems compared to undocumented immigrant adults that did not use a smuggler. We conclude that modality of ingress into the US is a risk factor for poorer mental health among undocumented immigrant adults.
尽管众多研究发现，拉丁裔美国移民的平均健康状况优于在美国出生的人，但对生活在墨西哥的人群的研究发现，与从未移民或合法移民的墨西哥公民相比，无证移民的健康状况更差，尤其是那些被驱逐出境的人。然而，利用偷渡者穿越美墨边境的墨西哥移民的健康状况，在相关文献中存在空白。我们推测，与未使用偷渡者的无证移民成年人相比，使用偷渡者穿越美墨边境的无证移民成年人返回墨西哥后更有可能报告心理健康问题。我们分析了1563名目前居住在墨西哥的无证移民的具有全国代表性的横断面调查数据。样本中的大多数无证移民（87%）使用了偷渡者。与未使用偷渡者的无证移民成年人相比，使用偷渡者的无证移民成年人出现情绪或精神问题的患病率高出4.7%。我们得出结论，进入美国的方式是无证移民成年人心理健康较差的一个风险因素。
