BackgroundMexican immigrants in the United States face mental health challenges, disparities, and limited access to healthcare; however, mental health promotion Hot Water Dispensers efforts specifically targeting this population have been insufficient.The objective of this study was to develop and test a mental health promotion intervention based on protective mental health factors and coping strategies for Mexican immigrants recruited through a free, consulate-based program in Atlanta.Material and MethodsWorking with the Ventanilla de Salud program, we conducted a longitudinal study in three phases: formative research and design, pre-intervention assessment and post-implementation evaluation.The intervention was designed based on the health promotion model and interviews with stakeholders.Qualitative information was collected by semi-structured interviews with participants before and after the intervention.
Quantitative outcomes were knowledge about protective factors and coping mechanisms, and psychosocial distress.Differences were assessed using the Wilcoxon non-parametrical test.Intent-to-treat analysis was conducted with all participants who signed the informed consent (carrying last observation forward), and a complete case analysis was conducted with those who attended at least 70% of the sessions and completed the post- implementation evaluation.ResultsTwenty-five participants were enrolled in the intervention.Mean age was 38 years, and the majority were women.
Only nine participants attended at least 70% of the sessions and completed the final evaluation.Men, those who did not complete high school, and workers in service or construction jobs were more likely to drop out.Knowledge about protective factors [pre- vs.post-intervention median (inter-quartile range) = Camera Battery 111 (100, 120) vs.115 (100, 124)] and coping mechanisms [96 (85, 104) vs.
99 (90, 110)], as well as psychosocial distress [3 (2, 3) vs.2 (2, 3)] improved after the intervention in both intent-to treat and complete case analyses (p < 0.05).Qualitative results also support improvements in targeted protective factors.DiscussionThe intervention was successful in improving psychological distress among Mexican immigrants.
These results support the implementation of evidence-based mental health promotion interventions among Mexican immigrants via free and familiar programs.A limitation was the high attrition; future studies should explore approaches to improve retention in this population.