Mental health problems in occupational health care. A pilot study

Purposes of the present study were to report prevalence data of and background factors to mental health problems in Swedish state employees attending occupational health care as compared to primary care patients. The Hopkins Symptom Check List (HSCL-25) was administered to a sample of 39 patients. For comparative reasons, 39 patients matched for sex and age were selected from a primary care sample of 388 patients. The frequency of mental health problems was 33% in occupational health care and 26% in primary care. Patients with mental health problems in both samples presented a diffuse psychosomatic clinical picture and reported a higher degree of loneliness. State employees with mental health problems reported a higher frequency of work-related problems.