The impact of earthquakes on women: assessing women's mental health in aftermath of the Kahramanmaraş-centred earthquake in Türkiye
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2024 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Web | https://academic.oup.com/jpubhealth/advance-article/doi/10.1093/pubmed/fdae059/7664192?login=true |
| Doi | http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/pubmed/fdae059 |
| Keywords | earthquakes; mental health; women's health |
| Attached files | |
| Description | Background Earthquakes disproportionately affect women and exacerbate gender and social inequalities. This study aims to investigate the psychological impact of the earthquake in T & uuml;rkiye on women and the associated factors.Methods This is a survey-based study. We collected data from 498 women residing in cities most affected by the earthquake.Results Participants' mean age was 27.72 +/- 5.4. Over 78% of the participants lost at least one family member, and 43.7% lost at least one child due to the earthquake. The mean average of Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) scores was 100.8 (SD = 8.37), and the Global Severity Index was 1.9 (SD = 0.16). Regression analysis showed that higher education levels predicted poor outcomes across most BSI dimensions. Losing a family member and shelter and injury status were also predictors for several mental health outcomes of the BSI subscales.Conclusions Earthquakes significantly impact women's well-being and may have a broader impact on the whole family. There is an urgent need to provide psycho-social interventions in the response and recovery phases of the crisis to meet the affected women's needs. This includes providing basic needs with attention to women-specific needs, restoring social networks, addressing gender-based violence and providing gender-sensitive specialized interventions for those who need further support. |
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