Depression and anxiety symptoms among Vietnamese migrants in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic

Tadashi Yamashita; Pham Nguyen Quy; Emi Nogami; Erina Seto-Suh; Chika Yamada; Saori Iwamoto; Kyoko Shimazawa; Kenji Kato

doi:10.1186/s41182-023-00542-8

Depression and anxiety symptoms among Vietnamese migrants in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic

Trop Med Health. 2023 Oct 31;51(1):59. doi: 10.1186/s41182-023-00542-8.

Authors

Tadashi Yamashita¹, Pham Nguyen Quy², Emi Nogami³, Erina Seto-Suh⁴, Chika Yamada⁵, Saori Iwamoto⁶, Kyoko Shimazawa⁷, Kenji Kato⁸

Affiliations

¹ Faculty of Nursing, Kobe City College of Nursing, 3-4 Gakuennishi-Machi, Nishi-ku, Kobe, Hyogo, 651-2103, Japan. yamashita@tr.kobe-ccn.ac.jp.
² Department of Medical Oncology, Kyoto Miniren Central Hospital, Kyoto, Japan.
³ Department of Social Welfare, School of Psychology and Social Welfare, Mukogawa Women's University, Nishinomiya, Japan.
⁴ Human Rights Research Institute, Kindai University, Higashi Osaka, Japan.
⁵ Department of Environmental Coexistence, Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
⁶ Faculty of Nursing, Kobe City College of Nursing, 3-4 Gakuennishi-Machi, Nishi-ku, Kobe, Hyogo, 651-2103, Japan.
⁷ Faculty of Global Nursing, Otemae University, Osaka, Japan.
⁸ Faculty of Nursing, Kobe Women's University, Kobe, Japan.

Abstract

This study aimed to examine the mental health status and related factors among Vietnamese migrants in Japan during the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted an online cross-sectional survey between September 21 and October 21, 2021. Along with Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7) scores, we collected data on demographics, changes in socioeconomic status due to the pandemic, language proficiency, social support, and health conditions. Multivariate logistic regression was performed to identify factors related to symptoms of depression and anxiety. Among 621 participants who completed the questionnaire, moderate-to-severe symptoms of depression (PHQ-9 score ≥ 10 points) and mild-to-severe symptoms of anxiety (GAD-7 score ≥ 5 points) were observed in 203 (32.7%) and 285 (45.9%) individuals, respectively. Factors related to depressive symptoms were age (95% confidence interval [CI]=0.89-0.99), pre-existing health conditions (95% [CI]=1.61-3.76), and a low subjective socioeconomic status (95% [CI]=1.64-3.71). Factors related to anxiety symptoms were being single (95% [CI]=1.01-2.93), having pre-existing health conditions (95% [CI]=1.63-3.88), subjective socioeconomic status (95% [CI]=1.87-3.97), and absence of a partner to discuss one's health with (95% [CI]=1.11-2.47). Vietnamese migrants in Japan experienced a decrease in income, worsening working conditions, and poor mental health status during the COVID-19 pandemic. Further investigations are necessary to find an effective way to increase their social support and mitigate socioeconomic adversities.

Keywords: Anxiety; COVID-19; Depression; Mental health; Migrants; Vietnamese.

Abstract

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