Maternal Depression and Associated Factors Among South Sudanese Refugee Mothers in Gambella's Tierkidi Refugee Camp: <i>A Cross-Sectional Study</i>

Abstract

Background: Maternal depression stands out as the prevailing psychiatric condition during pregnancy, with its detrimental impacts posing significant consequences for both the mother and the fetus. Nearly a quarter of women will encounter depression at some stage in their lives, with the majority experiencing it during their childbearing years. Refugee women face elevated susceptibility to mental health disorders, with rates surpassing those of host populations. Objective: The objective of this study is to determine the prevalence of maternal depression and the associated factors with it among South Sudanese refugee women living in the Gambella region, in the Tierkidi refugee camp in 2023. Method: A community-based cross-sectional study conducted within the Gambella region's Tierkidi refugee camp in Ethiopia involved 452 randomly selected participants who were pregnant and had given birth within the past 12 months. Data collection utilized a pretested structured questionnaire administered through interviews. Data coding and entry were performed using Epi-Info version 7.2, with subsequent analysis conducted in SPSS version 23. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were employed to identify associations between the outcome variable and explanatory variables. The strength of association was assessed using odds ratios at a 95% confidence interval, and associations were deemed significant at a p-value of less than 0.05. Results: In this study, the prevalence of maternal depression was found to be 31.5% (95% CI: 27.4-37.8). Significant associations were observed between maternal depression and unmarried marital status (AOR = 13.39, 95% CI: 3.11-57.7), unplanned pregnancy (AOR = 6.76, 95% CI: 2.13-21.4), intimate partner violence (AOR = 5.4, 95% CI: 2.32-12.4), number of pregnancies (AOR = 4.85, 95% CI: 2.56-9.17), and history of abortion (AOR = 3.97, 95% CI: 1.07-14.7). Conclusion: The study revealed a high prevalence of maternal depression among pregnant mothers with infants less than 12 months old. Factors such as being unmarried, experiencing unplanned pregnancy, having a history of abortion, a higher number of pregnancies, lack of social support, and a history of intimate partner violence were found to be significantly associated with maternal depression.