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Volume 2024, Issue 3
  • ISSN: 0253-8253
  • EISSN: 2227-0426

Abstract

Background: Arab countries host 10% of all migrants globally. Migrant workers are known to have a high burden of physical and psychiatric morbidity. Most of the published literature on mental health among migrant workers is from non-Arab countries. The limited literature on migrant workers’ mental health in Arab countries is a critical research gap. It is pertinent to study well-defined migrant groups within well-defined host country conditions to yield pragmatic answers to inform service delivery.

Aims: The current study aims to complement existing data by characterizing psychiatric morbidity in a well-defined migrant group within a specifically defined context of migration.

Methods: Retrospective review of patient notes.

Results: All participants were men, and most of them were aged between 30 and 49 years. More than two-thirds presented with anxiety or depressive disorders. More than half had a past psychiatric history. Psychological distress was linked to stressors such as limited social support, living away from family, financial stressors, family-related stressors, and work-related stress. One-fourth of the participants reported stress related to the pandemic. Half of them reported physical health comorbidities. Two-thirds were not compliant with treatment plans, and one-fourth were lost to follow-up.

Conclusion: This is the first study to provide insight into the psychiatric morbidity of lower-skilled migrants presenting to outpatient psychiatry clinics in Qatar. The psychiatric morbidity of migrants is mainly centered around depressive and anxiety-related disorders. The most common challenges encountered in the management of patients include patient concordance with medication and loss to follow-up. Mitigation strategies are vital for ensuring the psychological well-being of migrant workers.

© 2024 Latoo, Wadoo, Iqbal, Khan, Amin, Ouanes, et al., Licensee HBKU Press.
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2024-08-08
2024-09-06
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/content/journals/10.5339/qmj.2024.29
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A national study of psychiatry outpatient visits by lower-skilled male migrant workers in Qatar
Qatar Medical Journal 2024, 29 (2024); https://doi.org/10.5339/qmj.2024.29
/content/journals/10.5339/qmj.2024.29
/content/journals/10.5339/qmj.2024.29
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  • Article Type: Research Article
Keyword(s): Arab countries, lower-skilled migrants and Psychiatric morbidity

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