Resilience and stressful situations in a population in Colombia displaced by force

Keywords: forced displacement, poverty, resilience. Objective: To determine stressful situations affecting displaced by force population compared with vulnerable population (historic poor). Methods: This is a descriptive, observational, cross-sectional study; based in a database made for ASCOFAME and the University of Cartagena in Cartagena, Colombia in 2006-2008. This study asks for stressful situations to each family. Two groups were compared. Logistic regression was performed, with Odds Ratio (OR), and a confidence interval of 95%. Results: 5693 persons were analyzed, within 1212 families. Dead as a stressful situations had a OR of 1.076 (IC95% 0.91-1.26;p=0.37); any kind of perceive disease, OR 0.987 (IC95% 0.869-1.121;p=0.84); separation, OR 0.987 (IC95% 0.869-1.121;p=0.84); school expulsion, OR 0.419 (IC95% 0.286-0.615;p<0.001); job troubles, OR 0.819 (IC95% 0.683-0.983;p=.032); unemployment, OR 1.146 (IC95% 1.030-1.276;p=0.01); economic changes, OR 1.139 (IC95% 1.013-1.281;p=0.03); pregnancy, OR 1.374 (IC95% 1.066-1.770;p=0.01); adoption, OR 1.417 (IC95% 0.979-2.049;p=0.06); home departure, OR 1.417 (IC95% 0.979-2.049;p=0.06); new member, OR 1.027 (IC95% 0.845-1.249;p=0.78); conjugal dysfunction, OR 1.256 (IC95% 1.009-1.564;p=0.041); jubilation, OR non-applicable to the model (p=0.985); alcoholism and addiction, OR 1.051 (IC95% 0.819-1.349;p=0.69); infidelity, OR 1.262 (IC95% 0.990-1.608;p=0.06); receptive family, OR 0.594 (IC95% 0.454-0.778;p<.001); displacement, OR 2.034 (IC95% 1.810-2.284;p<0,001); and legal troubles, OR 2.034 (IC95% 1.810-2.284;p<0,001). Conclusions: Some stressful situations prevalence differences weren’t statistically significant between the two populations. Unemployment, economic changes, pregnancy, conjugal dysfunction, displacement and legal troubles were more significant in the displaced population. The situations less problematic for them were school expulsion, work problems, and receiving member. The fact they feel less problems acquiring jobs and school expulsion despite having more unemployment shows great resilience. Impact: This study helps identify stressful situations in displaced communities, and guide public health officials to redirect efforts to try to diminish these conditions, or the wrong perception they have about them.