Mental disorders among primary health care patients in Nicaragua

The objective of this study was to validate the Self Report Questionnaire (SRQ-20) as a screening instrument to identify probable psychiatric cases in the general population in Nicaragua and to study the prevalence and identification of mental disorders in primary health care. In the general population 576 people were screened using SRQ-20. A subsample was further interviewed using the Present State Examination (PSE). In primary health care centers 781 patients were screened according to SRQ-20 and staff indicated whether a mental disorder was identified or not. In the general population study, 9/10 turned out an adequate cut-off for SRQ-20, identifying 23% as probable cases. Using the same cut-off, 47% of the primary health care patients were identified as probable cases. Among male probable cases only 7% were identified as cases by health care staff, and among female probable cases health care staff identified 13% as cases. When the results are compared with previous studies, it becomes evident that the general level of psycho-emotional complaints and accordingly the cut-off for caseness differ in different parts of the world. SRQ must be calibrated for each cultural setting. Among primary health care patients, mental disorders were overrepresented and frequently overlooked by the physicians. Educational programs with training in psychiatry should be implemented for primary health care staff.