The Contribution Of Neighborhood Characteristics To Psychological Outcomes After Serious Injury In A Cohort Of Black Men: A Multi-Methods Study

ABSTRACT THE CONTRIBUTION OF NEIGHBORHOOD CHARACTERISTICS TO PSYCHOLOGICAL OUTCOMES AFTER SERIOUS INJURY IN A COHORT OF BLACK MEN: A MULTIMETHODS STUDY Marta Maria Bruce Therese S. Richmond Black men bear a disproportionate burden of injury, experience sub-optimal injury-related physical and emotional outcomes and reside in neighborhoods that may contribute to or detract from post-injury recovery. In addition, they are underrepresented in clinical research. An important next step for the field entails understanding why Black men choose to participate in clinical research, their injury and recovery experiences, and which neighborhood factors are associated with negative post-injury psychological sequelae. Risk factors for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) include a variety of individual-level characteristics, however, neighborhood etiologic factors have been understudied, with several such attributes (concentrated disadvantage, physical/structural conditions, services/amenities, social capital, and residential segregation) having plausible linkages to depression and PTSD. Addressing these gaps will help to identify which specific neighborhood features matter for depression and PTSD and will contribute to curtailing the burden of psychological morbidity associated with these disorders. Findings from this study will assist researchers in understanding the needs and concerns of this vulnerable population in clinical research, will allow health providers to risk-stratify patients more accurately, and target resources to communities most in need in order to improve post-injury outcomes and reduce health disparities.