Abstract
Background/Purpose: Depression is the most common psychiatric illness among older immigrants. Chinese-Americans represent the largest ethnic group among the Asian-American population. However, we have limited understanding of potential factors associated with depressive symptoms with medication adherence and self-management among older Chinese immigrants. This study aimed to examine the potential associations among socio-demographic factors, self-management, and depressive symptoms among older Chinese immigrants.
Methods: We recruited participants from psychiatric clinics who seek professional help. Participants were community-dwelling Chinese immigrants from Asian countries 50 years or older; able to speak and understand either Mandarin or Cantonese; and had a diagnosis with major depressive disorder. Depressive symptoms were measured with Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology; cognitive function was measured with Montreal cognitive assessment; social support was measured with Medical Outcomes Survey Social Support Scale; sleep quality was measured with Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index; physical activity was measured with International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were performed.
Results: Ninety-nine Chinese older immigrants residing in New York City were included in this study. The mean age of participants was 60.69 ± 7.62 years old (range: 50-88). 30.3% of participants still reported moderate to very severe depression with medication adherence and psychotherapy. Participants who had more children (p < .05), poor health status (p < .01), and poor quality of life (p < .01) had more depressive symptoms. Participants who had more depressive symptoms had worse cognitive function (p < .01), poor social support (p < .01), poor sleep quality (p < .001), and less physical activity (p < .05).
Conclusions/Implications: Our findings showed that cognitive function, social support, sleep quality, and physical activity were significantly associated with depressive symptoms. Our results provide knowledge for developing culturally sensitive self-management interventions for older Chinese immigrants with depressive disorder in managed care settings.