Relative prevalence of psychological morbidity in older immigrants

Abstract

This study examined the rates of psychological morbidity in Australian-born elderly and three immigrant elderly groups. The prevalence of psychological morbidity (as estimated by scores on the General Health Questionnaire-28, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and a brief treatment-use screening instrument) was examined in community samples of English-speaking (mostly Australian-born), Italian-speaking, Macedonian-speaking and Spanish-speaking elderly people living in the community. Morbidity levels were shown to be quite variable. Italian-speaking elderly (particularly women) had the highest levels. Immigrant elderly groups of non-English speaking background tended to have higher levels of pat..