Sociodemographic Predictors of Depression in US Rural Communities During COVID-19: Implications for Improving Mental Healthcare Access to Increase Disaster Preparedness.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this research is to identify sociodemographic predictors of depression for a rural population in the US during the COVID-19 pandemic to enhance mental health disaster preparedness. METHODS: This study uses t-tests to differentiate between gender and ethnicity groups regarding depression status; binary logistic regression to identify socio-demographic characteristics that predict depression status; and t-test to differentiate between average depression scores, measured by the PHQ-9, pre-COVID-19 pandemic (2019) and after it's start (2020). RESULTS: Results indicate that men were less likely than women to report depression. Clients who identified as Latinx/Hispanic were 2.8 times more likely than non-Hispanics to report depression and clients who did not reside in public housing were 19.9% less likely to report depression. There was a statistically significant difference between mean PHQ-9 scores pre- and post-pandemic, with pre-pandemic scores lower on average, with a small effect size. CONCLUSIONS: Building on findings from this study, we propose ways to increase rural access to mental health services, through equitable access to telemedicine, to meet the needs of rural clients to increase disaster preparedness.

Changes in depression levels for U.S. rural communities before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic

The objective of this research is to identify whether there were statistically significant changes in depression severity for rural residents in the United States before the COVID-19 pandemic and after its start in 2020. This study uses paired-sample t tests to differentiate between depression levels, measured by the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, before the pandemic and after its start for a sample of rural residents (n = 324), as well as a subsample of women (n = 224) and Black clients (n = 55). Results indicate that the average Patient Health Questionnaire-9 decreased from 11.86 to 11.77 for the total sample and from 12 to 11.99 for the subsample of women, whereas the subsample of Black residents increased from 10.58 to 11.27 for prepandemic versus postpandemic levels, though the differences are not statistically significant. Given the urban/rural differences in coping with challenges stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States cannot have a one-size-fits-all pandemic response policy. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)