Help seeking and mental health outcomes among South Asian young adult survivors of sexual violence in the New York State Region.

BACKGROUND: Sexual violence is a growing issue faced across diverse South Asian American communities under the backdrop of a distinct religious and cultural environment that intersects with the ability to prevent and manage this public health crisis. There is also growing attention on sexual violence experienced by younger or second-generation South Asian Americans, although little is known on the prevalence of this violence and its impact on health outcomes. Using data from a community-driven sexual violence survey, this study describes the experience of sexual violence and related help seeking behaviors and mental health outcomes among 18-34-year-old South Asian Americans living near the New York (NY) State region. METHODS: Participants were recruited via social media to participate in an anonymous survey developed in partnership with an advisory board of South Asian young adult representatives. Data was analyzed descriptively and through adjusted logistic regression models. RESULTS: Overall, responses from 335 sexual assault survivors were analyzed. Types of assault experienced included no-contact (97.6%), contact (75.2%), rape attempts (50.2%), rape (44.6%), and multiple rape (19.6%). Many reported perpetrators were South Asian (65.1%) or family members (25.1%). Only 27.6% indicated they had reported assaults to authorities or received services. In adjusted analyses, odds of help seeking were higher among participants who were older (AOR:1.10, 95%CI:1.02-1.20), were a sexual minority (lesbian, gay, bisexual) (1.98, 1.05-3.71), had a family member as the perpetrator (1.85, 1.01-3.40), had lower disclosure stigma (1.66, 1.16-2.44), and experienced depression (2.16, 1.10-4.47). Odds of depression were higher among sexual minority participants and lower among those with higher sexual assault disclosure stigma (3.27, 1.61-7.16; 0.68, 0.50-0.93). CONCLUSIONS: Findings call for greater targeted policy interventions to address the prevention of sexual violence among young South Asian Americans and greater focus on improving help seeking behaviors and improving mental health outcomes among survivors.

Sexual violence among LGB+ South Asian Americans: Findings from a community survey.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and other sexual minority (LGB+) South Asian Americans represent a disproportionately underserved and often invisible community in the United States. While issues of sexual violence have been documented in the South Asian American community, little is known on its impact among LGB+ individuals. This study explores the experience of sexual violence, related attitudes, and mental health outcomes among LGB+ South Asian Americans. A community-informed online survey of 18-34-year-old South Asian Americans living near the New York State region, recruited from online social media platforms, was conducted. Study design, implementation, and evaluation occurred in partnership with an advisory board of South Asian young adult representatives; data was analyzed both descriptively and through multivariable logistic regression models. Of the 385 participants who reported their sexuality, LGB+ participants comprised 24.1% (n = 93) of the sample. LGB+ participants were more likely to have experienced rape multiple times (17.2% vs. 9.6%) in bivariate analyses, and higher odds of depression (AOR:3.47, 95%CI:1.61-8.17) in adjusted analyses. Overall, LGB+ South Asian Americans displayed a disproportionate burden of sexual violence and depression. Findings identify policy and research pathways to address sexual violence among LGB+ South Asians.

Influence of organizational and social contexts on the implementation of culturally adapted hypertension control programs in Asian American-serving grocery stores, restaurants, and faith-based community sites: a qualitative study.

Hypertension affects a third of U.S. adults and is especially high among Asian American groups. The Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health for Asian AmeRicans (REACH FAR) project delivers culturally adapted, evidence-based hypertension-related programs to Bangladeshi, Filipino, Korean, and Asian Indian communities in New York and New Jersey through 26 sites: ethnic grocery stores, restaurants, and Muslim, Christian, and Sikh faith-based organizations. Knowledge of the implementation mechanisms of culturally adapted programs is limited and is critical to inform the design and execution of such programs by and in community sites. We applied four categories of the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research-intervention and individuals' characteristics, inner and outer setting-to analyze factors influencing implementation outcomes, that is, site leaders' perceptions about adopting, adapting, and sustaining REACH FAR. We conducted semistructured interviews with 15 leaders, coded them for implementation outcomes, and recoded them to identify contextual factors. Our findings show that REACH FAR resonated in sites where leaders perceived unhealthy diet and lifestyles in their communities (intervention characteristics), sites had historically engaged in health programs as a public-service mission (inner setting), and leaders identified with this mission (individuals' characteristics). Site leaders strived to adapt programs to respond to community preferences (outer setting) without compromising core objectives (inner setting). Leaders noted that program sustainability could be impeded by staff and volunteer turnover (inner setting) but enhanced by reinforcing programs through community networks (outer setting). The findings suggest that to facilitate implementation of culturally adapted health behavior programs through community sites, interventions should reinforce sites' organizational commitments and social ties.

A Faith-Based Intervention to Reduce Blood Pressure in Underserved Metropolitan New York Immigrant Communities.

Minority populations, including Asian Americans, face disparities in hypertension compared with non-Hispanic whites. This underscores the need for culturally adapted programs in settings that reach Asian American communities, such as faith-based organizations. We worked collaboratively with community partners to culturally adapt and implement an evidence-based community blood pressure monitoring program for Asian Americans (Asian Indians, Koreans, Filipinos, and Bangladeshis) in metropolitan New York during 2015 and 2016. The program included regularly scheduled volunteer-led screening and counseling events with congregants at faith-based organizations. Among participants with complete 6-month data (n = 348), health-related self-efficacy significantly improved after 6 months, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure was significantly reduced in some subgroups; reductions were highest in participants who self-reported a previous diagnosis of hypertension. Among Asian Americans, faith-based programs may be a replicable, low-cost, sustainable way to increase health-related self-efficacy and decrease blood pressure, specifically among individuals with self-reported hypertension.