Stress, Depression, and Occupational Injury among Migrant Farmworkers in Nebraska
1
Center for Reducing Health Disparities, College of Public Health, University of Nebraska Medical Center, 984340 Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-4340, USA
2
Department of Human Development and Family Science, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA
3
College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center/Omaha VA Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68105, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Academic Editor: Dennis Murphy
Safety 2016, 2(4), 23; https://doi.org/10.3390/safety2040023
Received: 23 May 2016 / Revised: 10 October 2016 / Accepted: 18 October 2016 / Published: 22 October 2016
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agricultural Safety and Health)
Agriculture is one of the most dangerous industries in the United States. Farmworkers, including migrant farmworkers, are at risk for work-related injuries. This study explores the association between stress, depression, and occupational injury among migrant farmworkers in Nebraska. Occupational injury was hypothesized to significantly increase the odds of farmworkers being stressed and depressed. Two hundred migrant farmworkers (mean age = 33.5 years, standard deviation (SD) = 12.53; 93.0% men, 92.9% of Mexican descent) were interviewed. In bivariate analyses, results indicated that stress and depression were positively associated with occupational injury. Two logistic regression models were developed. Occupational injury was a significant factor for depression, but not for stress. Participants who had been injured on the job were over seven times more likely to be depressed. These results highlight the interconnection between the work environment and mental health. More must be done to foster well-being in rural, agricultural communities. Improving occupational health and safety information and training, integrating behavioral health services into primary care settings, and strengthening the protections of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act may improve conditions for migrant farmworkers in the rural Midwest.
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Keywords:
migrant farmworkers; farm injury; occupational injury; stress; depression; agricultural health
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited
MDPI and ACS Style
Ramos, A.K.; Carlo, G.; Grant, K.; Trinidad, N.; Correa, A. Stress, Depression, and Occupational Injury among Migrant Farmworkers in Nebraska. Safety 2016, 2, 23.
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