Does Assessment Method Matter in Detecting Mental Health Distress among Ashkenazi and Mizrahi Israeli Women with Breast Cancer?

• Published in: Health & social work Vol. 45; no. 2; pp. 101 - 109
• Main Authors: Nakash, Ora, Granek, Leeat, Cohen, Michal, Bar-Sela, Gil, Geffen, David, Ben David, Merav
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Oxford University Press 27-05-2020
• Subjects: Anxiety; Anxiety disorders; Ashkenazi Jews; Breast cancer; Cancer; Emotional distress; Emotions; Ethnic groups; Ethnicity; Females; Health facilities; Interviews; Jewish people; Jews; Measurement; Medical diagnosis; Mental health; Minority & ethnic groups; Minority groups; Oncology; Psychological distress; Racial differences; Self report; Women; Womens health; disparities; assessment; breast cancer; ethnicity; mental health
• ISSN: 0360-7283; 1545-6854
• DOI: 10.1093/hsw/hlaa004

Abstract
Authors examined differences in assessment method (structured diagnostic interview versus self-report questionnaire) between ethnic groups in the prevalence of mood and anxiety disorders among women with breast cancer. A convenience sample of 88 Mizrahi (Jews of Middle Eastern/North African descent, n = 42) and Ashkenazi (Jews of European/American descent, n = 46) women with breast cancer from oncology units in three health centers across Israel participated in the study. Participants were within eight months of diagnosis. Participants completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and a structured diagnostic interview, the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI). Approximately one-third (31.8 percent, n = 28) of participants were diagnosed with at least one mood or anxiety disorder based on the MINI. Significantly more Mizrahi participants (42.9 percent) were diagnosed with at least one mood or anxiety disorder, compared with their Ashkenazi counterparts (21.7 percent). Mean score on HADS was below the optimal cutoff score (≥13) among all participants, with no significant difference in mean score for emotional distress based on HADS between the two ethnic groups. The findings highlight the role of measurement variance in assessing mental health distress among women with breast cancer in general and among ethnic and racial minorities in particular.