Serious Psychological Distress: A National Study of Middle Eastern Immigrants.

INTRODUCTION: While Middle Eastern immigrants are a fast-growing population in the United States, there is very limited literature on their mental health. Most of the available studies were conducted on small convenient samples in local communities. AIMS: To examine rates of serious psychological distress (SPD), and its associated factors among Middle Eastern immigrants in the US, compared to US-born, non-Hispanic Whites. METHODS: Data from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) from 2001 to 2015 were analyzed. The survey included 1,246 Middle Eastern immigrants and 232,392 US-born, non-Hispanic Whites. SPD was measured by the Kessler-6 psychological distress scale. Survey analysis procedures, sampling weights, and variance estimates were conducted. Descriptive statistics and regression analyses were employed to examine differences and factors associated with SPD. RESULTS: SPD rate was the highest among Middle Eastern immigrants (5.99%) between 2006 and 2010. Among Middle Eastern immigrants, being female and obese were significantly associated with a higher risk of SPD. DISCUSSION: Middle Eastern immigrants in the US suffered high rates of SPD. Gender and obesity were factors associated with SPD risk. IMPLICATIONS: These outcomes indicate the need for mental health nursing interventions that provide culturally sensitive mental health care to immigrants, such as developing community-based prevention programs.