Abstract
This study assesses the utility of the primary care behavioral health screener (PCBHS), which the authors have adapted and translated for adult Bosnian refugees (PCBHS-B) living in the Midwest area of the United States, who utilized primary care services within a private physician clinic and a federally qualified health center. The study was conducted from March 2012–April 2013 and included 131 Bosnian respondents, 24% of whom were receiving behavioral health services. Similar to a non-Bosnian U.S. sample, one-third (34.4%) of the respondents experienced clinically significant symptoms. Results suggest that the PCBHS-B can be a useful and acceptable instrument for identifying behavioral health problems in Bosnian primary care patients.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abubakar, A., Dimitrova, R., Adams, B., Jordanov, V., & Stefenel, D. (2013). Procedures for translating and evaluating equivalence of questionnaires for use in cross-cultural studies. Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Barsov, Series VII, Social Sciences, Law, 6, 55.
Ariyo, A. A., Haan, M., Tangen, C. N., Rutledge, J. C., Cushman, M., Dobs, A., & Furberg, C. D. (2000). Cardiovascular health study collaborative research group: Depressive symptoms and risks of coronary heart disease and mortality in elderly Americans. Circulation, 102, 1773–1779.
Bemak, F., Chung, R.C.Y., & Pedersen, P. B. (2003). Counseling refugees: A psychosocial approach to innovative multicultural interventions. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.
Borowsky, S. J., Rubenstein, L. V., Merdith, L. S., Camp, P., Jackson-Triche, M., & Wells, K. B. (2000). Who is at risk for non-detection of mental health problems in primary care? Journal of General Internal Medicine, 15, 381–388.
Bosnia and Herzegovina Ministry of Security. (2011). Bosnia and Herzegovina Migration Profile for the year 2010. Retrieved from http://www.mhrr.gov.ba/iseljenistvo/Publikacije/Migration%20Profile%20for%202010.pdf.
Carballo, M., Smajkic, A., Zeric, D., Dzidowska, M., Gere-Medhin, J., & Van Halem, J. (2004). Mental health and coping in a war situation: The case of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Journal of Biosocial Science, 36, 463–477.
Cheah, W. H., Karamehic-Muratovic, A., & Matsuo, H. (2013). Ethnic group strength and host receptivity and conformity pressure among Bosnian refugees in St. Louis, Missouri. Journal of Immigrant and Refugee Studies, 11, 401–415.
Cheah, W. H., Karamehic-Muratovic, A., Matsuo, H., & Poljarevic, A. (2010). The influence of personal predispositions on refugees’ resettlement process. The International Journal of Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, 5, 37–48.
Craig, C. D., Sousso, M., Schnak, M., & Essex, H. (2008). Complicated grief and its relationship to mental health and well-being among Bosnian refugees after resettlement in the United States: Implications for practice, policy, and research. Traumatology, 14, 103–115.
Fiellin, D. A., Reid, C., & O’Connor, P. G. (2000). Screening for alcohol problems in primary care: A systematic review. Archives of Internal Medicine, 160, 1977–1989.
Gilsinan, K., CITYLAB. (2013, Feb. 15). Why are there So many Bosnians in St. Louis? Retrieved from http://www.citylab.com/politics/2013/02/why-are-there-so-many-bosnians-st-louis/4668/.
Hambleton, R. (2001). The next generation of the ITC test translation and adaptation guidelines. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 17, 164–172.
Hume, S. (2015). Two decades of Bosnian place-making in St. Louis, Missouri. Journal of Cultural Geography, 32, 1–22.
Hunt, N., & Gakenyi, M. (2005). Comparing refugees and nonrefugees: The Bosnian experience. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 19, 717–723.
Karamehic-Muratovic, A. & Cheah, W.H. (2012). Community mental health for new Americans: Pilot research. Paper presented at the Seventh International Conference on Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, Barcelona, Spain. June, 2012.
Kirmayer, L. J., Narasiah, L., Munoz, M., Rashid, M., Ryder, A. G., Guzder, J., … Pottie, K (2011). Common mental health problems in immigrants and refugees: general approach in primary care. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 183, E959–E967.
Kroenke, K., Spitzer, R., & Williams, W. (2001). The PHQ-9: Validity of a brief depression severity measure. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 16, 606–616.
Mollica, R. F., McInnes, K., Sarajlic, N., Lavelle, J., Sarajlic, I., & Massagli, M. P. (1999). Disability associated with psychiatric comorbidity and health status in Bosnian refugees living in Croatia. Journal of the American Medical Association, 282, 433–439.
Pollard, C. A., Margolis, R. B., Niemiec, R., Salas, J., & Aatre, G. (2013). Psychometric properties of the Primary Care Behavioral Health Screen. Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings, 20, 302–310.
Rivero, D. (2015). This city let in tens of thousands of mostly Muslim refugees. Here’s what happened. Retrieved, June 2, 2016 from http://fusion.net/story/238682/the-miracle-of-little-bosnia/.
Spitzer, R., Kroenke, K., & Williams, J. (1999). Validation and utility of a self-report version of PRIME-MD: The PHQ primary care study. Journal of the American Medical Association, 282, 1737–1744.
St. Louis Magazine. (2011). The Bosnian Boom in South County St. Louis. Accessed September 5, 2013
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees [UNHCR]. (2009). Refugees: Flowing across borders. Retrieved from http://www.unhcr.org/pages/49c3646c125.html.
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees [UNHCR]. (2016, June 2). What we do. Retrieved from http://www.unhcr.org/what-we-do.html.
Weine, S. M., Kuc, G., Dzudza, E., Razzano, L., & Pavkovic, I. (2001). PTSD among Bosnian refugees: A survey of providers’ knowledge, attitudes and service patterns. Community Mental Health Journal, 37, 261–271.
Weine, S. M., Muzurovic, N., Kulauzovic, Y., Besic, S., Lezic, A., Mujagic, A.,… Pavkovic, I. (2004). Family consequences of political violence in refugee families. Family Process, 43, 147–160.
Acknowledgements
Support for this study was provided by the Greater Saint Louis Health Foundation.
Funding
The funding was provided by Greater Saint Louis Health Foundation.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
Leigh E. Tenkku Lepper, Ajlina Karamehic-Muratovic, Joanne Salas, C. Alec Pollard, Edina Karahodzic, and Jaron Asher declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent
All procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical standards of the responsible committee on human experimentation of Saint Louis University Review Board and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2000. Informed consent was obtained from all patients for inclusion in the study.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Lepper, L.E.T., Karamehic-Muratovic, A., Salas, J. et al. Mental Health Screening in a Bosnian Refugee Population Using the Primary Care Behavioral Health Screener–Bosnian Translation. J Clin Psychol Med Settings 24, 152–162 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10880-017-9499-6
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10880-017-9499-6