A new research has underscored the disparities in mental health support for South Asian patients with kidney disease, a statement said.
The study from the University of Hertfordshire recommended specialist, culturally-adapted approaches for patients who face barriers in accessing mental health screening and care.
According to the research, South Asians are between three and five times more likely to develop end-stage kidney disease.
The group comprises around five per cent of the UK population, but 12.2 per cent of kidney service users in the country.
The study, funded by the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) to address this disparity, revealed that patients from these groups are rarely included in mental health research.
The study has undertaken assessments with over 200 South Asian dialysis patients and analysed results to make specialist recommendations.
Data shows that up to one in three patients with kidney disease will experience depression at some point.
Patients who require hospital-based haemodialysis are particularly vulnerable to low mood or symptoms of depression, given the nuances of the treatment itself as well as its impact on sustaining everyday life activities.
Dr Shivani Sharma, associate professor in Health Inequalities at the University’s School of Life and Medical Sciences, co-led the new study with Professor Ken Farrington, Consultant Nephrologist at the Lister Hospital, East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust.
Dr Sharma said: “Our study unveiled a number of obstacles to identifying depression in South Asian kidney patients. Language and cultural barriers were a common theme – for example, in many South Asian languages, there are no equivalent terms for depression. Where English is a language barrier, even when family members are on hand to translate, these cultural differences in how patients experience and express their symptoms contribute to under-diagnosis".
Published in PLOS ONE, the research highlighted the barriers that prevent South Asian patients being effectively screened for symptoms of depression, and the steps that should be taken to identify relevant symptom experiences.
As part of the study, Dr Sharma and her team not only provided culturally adapted and translated questionnaires in Gujarati, Punjabi, Urdu and Bengali, but also recruited bilingual project staff who became crucial to the study, as only 18 per cent of patients were able to self-complete the study unassisted.
The study found out that personalised, culturally sensitive support can have a major impact on people’s ability to engage meaningfully with screening and support.
The researchers achieved a 97 per cent consent to research completion rate, which is exceptionally promising to address under-representation in kidney research more generally.
“I am very proud of this study, which represents a significant step forward in improving access to inclusive care for patients managing multiple disadvantages. We have highlighted that we need to re-imagine what culturally responsive mental health care looks like, and how it is enabled in the context of living with a long-term condition," Dr Sharma added.
