Attitudes of Health Care Workers towards Elderly Depression in Kubau, Nigeria

Abstract

Primary health workers have been shown to write off depressed patients and most have the perception that depression cannot be managed. Data on attitudes towards elderly depression and care options at primary health care level especially in Nigeria and rural Africa is lacking. This study assessed the attitudes of primary health care workers towards elderly depression in Kubau, Nigeria. Materials and Methods: It was a cross sectional descriptive study carried out in June 2012, of the total health workers directly involved in patient care in Kubau. Information on the socio-demographics of the respondents, knowledge, attitudes and care options were obtained using a modified Depression Attitude Questionnaire, interviewer - administered. The collected data was cleaned and entered into SPSS version 16 and the results presented as tables and charts with statistical significance set at p < 0.05. Results: Most health workers had a good attitude towards depression and most (70%) thought elderly depressed patients could be managed, 88.3 % were willing to take time to detect and diagnose depressed patients. Conclusion: The study revealed a good attitude towards depression in the elderly among healthcare workers in Kubau, Nigeria.