Abstract
Background: In 2005, the German Microcensus began gathering data on the history of migration among the general population in addition to citizenship. It was found that 18.6% of the population had a history of migration. 14.2% of all immigrants were of Turkish origin and a further 9.4% were of Russian origin. The present study compares Turkish and Eastern European subgroups of immigrants in a psychiatric inpatient population.
Methods: TheMigration Working Group of the German Federal Conference of Psychiatric Hospital Directors surveyed newly admitted inpatients on one index day (July 19th, 2006) regarding history of migration, diagnosis, main language, and communication difficulties in 131 hospitals.
Results: 20.8% of the patients were of Eastern European and 6.2% of Turkish descent. Eastern European patients were overrepresented as compared to Turkish patients in the inpatient sample. Turkish immigrants reported Non-German as their main language more often than Eastern Europeans did. There was a trend towards more diagnostic categories of schizophrenia, schizotypal and delusional disorders (F2) as well as of mood disorders (F3) within the Turkish group. Eastern European patients had significantly more diagnoses of mental and behavioural disorders due to psychoactive substance use (F1). Eastern Europeans were more likely to have immigrated as adults, whereas Turkish patients were more often the children of immigrants.
Conclusions: Overall, an overrepresentation of Eastern European patients was found, whereas Turkish patients were underrepresented. Eastern European patients may have better access to psychiatric inpatient treatments than Turkish patients do. Moreover, Eastern European patients are more often found to be treated for addiction disorders in an inpatient setting.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.