Environmental conditions and acute illnesses among household members of migrant agricultural workers in Lebanon -

Abstract

Migrant agricultural workers in Lebanon face harsh occupational and living conditions which ultimately impact their health and wellbeing. A significant number of studies have shown that harsh living conditions characterized by poor housing and infrastructure have both direct and indirect effects on the prevalence of illnesses in underprivileged communities living in such conditions. In Lebanon, a number of studies found an association between the occurrence of chronic illnesses and the poor living conditions of three underprivileged communities. However, studies addressing these issues for migrant agricultural workers in particular remain scant worldwide. This study aims to identify the rates of acute health problems reported by Syrian migrant agricultural workers and members of their households in the Bekaa region in Lebanon and to explore the association between their living conditions and the reported acute health problems. A cross-sectional study of 46 households in the Ashish campsite in the West Bekaa valley was conducted in the summer of 2011. One proxy respondent from each housing unit in the cluster of dwellings was interviewed by trained interviewers using a standardized questionnaire. To analyze the association between housing and infrastructure conditions and acute health problems, a binary logistic regression model was developed using the Generalized Estimation Equation while adjusting for other relevant variables.The results obtained indicated a 43.8percent prevalence of acute illnesses among the migrant families, distributed between the flu, fever, headaches, diarrhea, oral health problems and others. Although overcrowding was a significant characteristic in most of the surveyed dwellings, there was no significant association between level of crowding and the reporting of illness. Migrants living in households with more housing and infrastructure problems were more likely to report the occurrence of an acute illness. The identified household and infrastructure conditions that were significantly associa