Baidoobonso Shamara, Etowa Egbe, Nnadi Joy, Mba Sandra, Tharao Wangari, Daboné Charles, Giwa Sulaimon, Ogunleye Ayokunle, Ndongmo Lilian Azangtsop, Etowa Josephine
Faculty of Medicine, Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada.
Faculty of Community Services, Toronto Metropolitan University, Daphne Cockwell School of Nursing, Toronto, ON, Canada.
J Immigr Minor Health. 2025 Feb;27(1):42-52. doi: 10.1007/s10903-024-01654-x. Epub 2024 Nov 29.
The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately affected African, Caribbean, and Black (ACB) people in Canada. Despite higher SARS-CoV-2 exposure risks, likelihood of being quarantined, and risk of severe disease outcomes, little is known about the pandemic's effects on this community's mental health. This study aims to identify factors associated with changes in ACB Canadians' mental health during the pandemic and provide guidance for improved access to mental health resources. Data was collected from May to July 2021 using a cross-sectional, national, online survey. Eligible participants for this community-based study were ACB adults residing in Canada. Survey measures included demographics, pandemic-related experiences, mental health status, and access to mental health services. Bivariate analyses and multinomial logistic regression examined associations between variables. Among the 1,556 participants, 25.4% reported improved mental health and 33.1% reported worsened mental health since the pandemic's onset. Improved mental health was associated with younger age, receiving at least one pandemic-related benefit, and living in a home that became safer. In contrast, worsened mental health was associated with younger age, working less, the pandemic having a major impact on ability to pay bills, not receiving pandemic-related benefits, home becoming less safe, and increased substance use. Barriers to accessing mental health services included difficulty getting an appointment, cost, pandemic measures, and lack of culturally competent care. These insights underscore the positive impact of pandemic-related emergency relief, the challenges in accessing mental health services, and the gaps in culturally competent mental health care.
新冠疫情对加拿大的非洲、加勒比和黑人（ACB）群体产生了尤为严重的影响。尽管感染新冠病毒的风险更高、被隔离的可能性更大以及出现严重疾病后果的风险更高，但对于疫情对该群体心理健康的影响却知之甚少。本研究旨在确定与疫情期间加拿大ACB群体心理健康变化相关的因素，并为改善心理健康资源的获取提供指导。数据于2021年5月至7月通过一项全国性的在线横断面调查收集。这项基于社区的研究的合格参与者为居住在加拿大的ACB成年人。调查指标包括人口统计学特征、与疫情相关的经历、心理健康状况以及获得心理健康服务的情况。双变量分析和多项逻辑回归检验了变量之间的关联。在1556名参与者中，25.4%的人报告心理健康状况有所改善，33.1%的人报告自疫情开始以来心理健康状况恶化。心理健康状况改善与年龄较小、获得至少一项与疫情相关的福利以及居住在更安全的家中有关。相比之下，心理健康状况恶化与年龄较小、工作减少、疫情对支付账单的能力有重大影响、未获得与疫情相关的福利、家庭变得不那么安全以及物质使用增加有关。获得心理健康服务的障碍包括预约困难、费用、疫情措施以及缺乏具有文化胜任力的护理。这些见解凸显了与疫情相关的紧急救济的积极影响、获得心理健康服务的挑战以及具有文化胜任力的心理健康护理方面的差距。
