Chronic Health Conditions, Physical Activity and Dietary Behaviors of Bhutanese Refugees: A Houston-Based Needs Assessment

• Published in: Journal of immigrant and minority health 2016-12, Vol.18 (6), p.1423-1431
• Main Authors: Misra, Sanghamitra M., Nepal, Vishnu P., Banerjee, Deborah, Giardino, Angelo P.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aerobic exercise; Arthritis; Arthritis - ethnology; Bhutan - ethnology; Blood pressure; Body Weight; Chronic Disease; Chronic Disease Prevention, Screening, and Management; Chronic illnesses; College Students; Community organizations; Community Relations; Comparative Law; Data collection; Diet; Dizziness; Dizziness - ethnology; Ethnicity; Evaluation; Exercise; Expenditures; Fatigue; Fatigue - ethnology; Female; Health Behavior - ethnology; Health care; Health care industry; Health care policy; Health Conditions; Health disparities; Health education; Health literacy; Health risk assessment; Health Status; Health Surveys; Healthy food; Humans; Hypertension; Hypertension - ethnology; Immigrants; Infectious diseases; International & Foreign Law; Land Settlement; Literacy; Male; Medical screening; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Men; Mental disorders; Mental health; Mental Health - ethnology; Middle Aged; Minority & ethnic groups; Needs analysis; Needs Assessment; Noncitizens; Nutrition; Original Paper; Pediatrics; Physical Activities; Physical activity; Physical Activity Level; Population; Private International Law; Public Health; Refugee camps; Refugees; Refugees - statistics & numerical data; Socioeconomic Factors; Sociology; Statistical analysis; Texas - epidemiology; Vegetables
• ISSN: 1557-1912; 1557-1920
• DOI: 10.1007/s10903-015-0282-1

Bhutanese refugees resettling in the U.S. face many challenges including several related to health and health care. Limited health literacy and the relatively complicated US health care system may contribute to health disparities as well. A health assessment was conducted on adult refugees in Houston, Texas to provide healthcare providers, community organizations, and stakeholders baseline data to plan programs and interventions. A convenience sample of 100 participants had a mean age of 38.37 years, 56 % where males, and almost 80 % did not have high school level education. High blood pressure (27 %), dizziness (27 %), and arthritis (22 %) were the commonly identified chronic health conditions and trouble concentrating (34 %) and fatigue (37 %) were also reported. Sixty-two percent of the respondents reported that they consume recommended servings of fruits and vegetables and 41 % reported that they were currently getting at least 20–30 min of aerobic exercise per day. The assessment concluded with recommendations on how better provide care and services for the refugees.