The Pattern Of Non-Psychotic Depression And Anxiety Among Patients Attending The General Outpatient Clinic Of The Federal Medical Centre, Yenagoa

📄 Project Abstract

In multiple studies abroad and locally, depression and anxiety disorders have been shown to be the commonest mental disorders and have relatively high prevalence in primary health care and general out-patient (GOP) clinic settings. In addition, several studies have shown that depression comorbid with anxiety disorders in GOP and general population settings. A disturbing finding for the ideal of meeting the mental health care needs of people is that, despite the noted high prevalence of these disorders, doctors in non-psychiatric settings fail to detect the vast majority of such subjects in GOP clinic settings. Furthermore, the vast majority of Nigerian studies on psychiatric morbidity in non-psychiatric clinical settings have been based on the use of either general psychic distress measures (e.g., Goldberg's General Health Questionnaire) or general disease-specific measures that are rather lengthy and not focused on diagnostic criteria. In addition, a diligent review of electronic lite...