Prioritization of factors related to mental health of women during an earthquake: A qualitative study

doi:10.5847/wjem.j.1920-8642.2019.03.006

Abstract

Abstract:

BACKGROUND: According to the fact that women account for the highest rate of victims of mental health loss during disasters, prioritization of their requirements is of remarkable significance. Therefore, the present study was carried out with the aim to prioritize factors related to women's mental health during an earthquake.
METHODS: This study was conducted using the Delphi method in 2017. Participants consisted of experts including psychologists, counselors and psychiatrists, social medicine specialists, and psychiatric-mental health nurses with experience in service and disaster awareness, especially earthquake. They were selected using purposive and snowball sampling methods. The Delphi method was used in 2 rounds with 21 components and the final attendance of 19 participants and the collective agreement of 75%.
RESULTS: Of the 21 factors related to women's mental health during the earthquake, the following components were, respectively, preferred by the participants: psychological well-being training, group relationships and support of women in emergency situations, fair treatment in the provision of rights and services to women, crisis awareness and management of behavior and difficult conditions, and social security during disasters with the total mean standard deviation (SD) of 13.4 (2.4), 13.0 (2.4), 12.7 (2.5), 12.5 (2.4), and 12.3 (2.2), respectively.
CONCLUSION: Training in the field of psychology and disasters, and social and cultural factors were prioritized among factors related to women's mental health during an earthquake. Therefore, the results of this study can be applied by the planners and executives of mental health, women and disasters, and the women's community itself.

Key words: Mental health, Women, Earthquake, Qualitative study

Rahele Samouei, Shahin Shooshtari, Masoud Bahrami, Mohammad Reza Abedi, Mohammad Reza Maracy. Prioritization of factors related to mental health of women during an earthquake: A qualitative study[J]. World Journal of Emergency Medicine, 2019, 10(3): 160-168.

Figures/Tables 4

Figure 1.

Table 1

Table 2

Prioritizing factors related to mental health of women during an earthquake in terms of the views of experts based on descriptive statistics in the Delphi method (n=19)

Factors related to mental health of women during an earthquake	Applicability		Significance		Effectiveness		Total
	Mean (SD)	Median 5-1	Mean (SD)	Median 5-1	Mean (SD)	Median 5-1	Mean (SD)	Median 5-1
Genetic behavior	1.7 (1.0)	1	3.1 (1.3)	3	3.1 (1.2)	3	8.0 (3.0)	8
Hormonal and sexual behavior	3.1 (1.0)	3	3.5 (0.9)	4	3.5 (1.0)	4	10.2 (2.5)	11
Group relationships and support in emergency situations	4.4 (0.8)	5	4.4 (1.0)	5	4.3 (0.9)	5	13.1 (2.4)	14
Fair treatment in the provision of women’s rights and services	4.0 (1.1)	4	4.4 (1.0)	5	4.3 (0.9)	5	12.7 (2.5)	14
Dignity and position of women in situations of damage	3.8 (0.8)	4	4.3 (0.9)	5	3.8 (1.1)	4	12.0 (2.3)	12
Role and responsibilities of women in crisis	3.7 (1.0)	4	4.0 (1.0)	4	3.8 (0.9)	4	11.6 (2.5)	11
Social security during disasters	4.0 (1.1)	4	4.3 (0.9)	4	4.0 (0.8)	4	12.3 (2.2)	12
Injurious behaviors in disastrous situations	3.8 (0.9)	4	4.3 (0.8)	4	4.1 (1.0)	4	12.3 (2.2)	12
Policy-making in accordance with the status of women in disasters	3.7 (1.4)	4	4.3 (0.7)	4	4.1 (0.9)	4	12.2 (2.6)	13
Establishment and implementation of fair rules for women	3.6 (1.5)	4	4.3 (0.9)	5	4.2 (0.8)	4	12.1 (2.8)	13
Governing culture in the disaster area	3.3 (1.1)	4	4.0 (1.1)	4	3.9 (1.0)	4	11.3 (2.2)	12
Relationship of spirituality and disaster	3.9 (1.1)	4	3.5 (1.4)	4	3.2 (1.5)	3	10.6 (3.2)	10
Training of psychological well-being	4.3 (0.8)	5	4.6 (0.8)	5	4.5 (1.0)	5	13.4 (2.4)	14
Psychological well-being through treatment of mental disorders	4.0 (1.0)	4	4.1 (1.3)	5	3.8 (1.3)	4	12.0 (3.4)	13
Nutrition and physical activity during disasters	3.9 (1.2)	4	4.0 (0.9)	4	3.8 (1.1)	4	11.8 (2.7)	12
Awareness of high-risk behavioral habits	3.7 (1.2)	4	4.0 (0.9)	4	3.8 (0.8)	4	11.5 (2.5)	11
Health-related behaviors during disasters	4.0 (0.8)	4	3.9 (1.0)	4	3.6 (1.0)	3	11.5 (2.4)	12
Crisis awareness and behavior management in difficult situations	4.2 (1.1)	5	4.3 (0.9)	5	4.0 (1.0)	4	12.5 (2.4)	12
Gaining skills and experiences	4.0 (0.9)	4	3.9 (1.1)	4	3.6 (1.3)	4	11.5 (3.0)	12
Climatic elements in the area of damage	2.9 (1.3)	3	3.3 (1.0)	3	3.0 (1.2)	3	9.3 (3.3)	9
Regional environmental design	3.6 (1.1)	4	3.6 (1.0)	3	3.2 (1.3)	3	10.4 (2.9)	10

Table 2

Table 3

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Demographic characteristics		n (%)	Demographic characteristics		n (%)
Sex	Men	10 (52.6)	The city of residency	Tehran	6 (31.6)
Sex	Women	9 (47.4)		Isfahan	9 (47.4)
Educational degree	PhD	11 (57.9)		Ahvaz	2 (10.5)
Educational degree	Specialist	8 (42.1)		Tabriz	2 (10.5)
Educational field	Psychiatry	5 (26.3)	Organization	Medical universities	10 (52.6)
	Psychology and counseling	7 (36.8)		Ministry of Health and Medical Education	2 (10.5)
	Social medicine	3 (15.8)		Deputy Health and Medical Center	2 (10.5)
	Health management in disasters	3 (15.8)		Iranian Welfare Organization	3 (15.8)
	Health and social welfare	1 (5.3)		Red Crescent Organization	2 (10.5)

Factors related to mental health of women during disasters	Applicability	Significance	Effectiveness	Total (%)
Genetic behavior	15.8	63.2	63.2	47.4
Hormonal and sexual behavior	68.4	84.2	84.2	78.9
Group relationships and support in emergency situations	100.0	94.7	94.7	96.5
Fair treatment in the provision of women’s rights and services	94.7	94.7	94.7	94.7
Dignity and position of women in situations of damage	94.7	94.7	94.7	94.7
Role and responsibilities of women in crisis	94.7	94.7	94.7	94.7
Social security during disasters	89.5	94.7	94.7	93.0
Injurious behaviors in disastrous situations	94.7	94.7	94.7	94.7
Policy-making in accordance with the status of women in disasters	78.9	100.0	94.7	91.2
Establishment and implementation of fair rules for women	78.9	94.7	100.0	91.2
Governing culture in the disaster area	73.7	94.7	94.7	87.7
Relationship of spirituality and disaster	89.5	73.7	63.2	75.5
Training of psychological well-being	100.0	94.7	94.7	96.5
Psychological well-being through treatment of mental disorders	89.5	84.2	78.9	84.2
Nutrition and physical activity during disasters	89.5	94.7	84.2	89.5
Awareness of high-risk behavioral habits	89.5	94.7	100.0	94.7
Health-related behaviors during disasters	100.0	94.7	89.5	94.7
Crisis awareness and behavior management in difficult situations	94.7	94.7	89.5	92.7
Gaining skills and experiences	94.7	89.5	78.9	87.7
Climatic elements in the area of damage	63.2	84.2	73.7	73.7
Regional environmental design	78.9	89.5	73.7	80.7

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