The Prevalence and Burden of Psychiatric Disorders in Primary Health Care Visits in Asir Region Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND

Psychiatric disorders encompass a wide range of conditions that affect an individual's mental health and well-being. These disorders can manifest in various ways. The recognition, diagnosis, treatment, and referral of psychological conditions heavily rely on general practitioners, who handle consultations that involve a psychological aspect in at least one third of cases.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the prevalence and burden of common psychiatric disorders at primary health care centers (PHCs) using the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K6) in the general population, aged 18-65, and examine their symptom patterns and comorbidity.

METHODOLOGY: A descriptive online cross-sectional survey was conducted over a one-month period, spanning from September to October 2023. The survey targeted the population living in the Asir region. To fulfill the objectives, the K6 scale was used. Data analysis was carried out using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25. P values were considered statistically significant when they were ≤0.05.

RESULTS

The survey included a total of 1,595 participants. Of these, 21.3% of respondents were male, while 78.7% were female. The majority of respondents fall within the 18-25 age group, accounting for 50.5% of the total. A significant portion of the population experiences some form of psychological distress, with 4.6% reporting low psychological distress, 36.1% reporting mild psychological distress, and a substantial 59.2% reporting severe psychological distress. Age (p-value=0.024), gender (p-value=0.001), educational level (p-value=0.001), occupation (p-value=0.008), and monthly income (p-value=0.001) had significant associations with the psychological distress score of psychiatric disorders.

CONCLUSION

The prevalence and burden of psychiatric disorders in primary health care visits in Saudi Arabia is a significant public health concern. Our findings showed that the majority of participants reported having severe to mild psychological distress.