Mental health and contact with primary care services in old age

Abstract

AbstractProfiles of mental and physical health status and reports of contact with primary care and personal social services were obtained from 979 individuals aged 65 years and over randomly selected from the Nottinghamshire Family Practitioner Committee's records. On the basis of personal disturbance scores derived from the Symptoms of Anxiety and Depression scale (SAD) administered at the time of interview, respondents were classified as psychiatrically ‘normal’, ‘borderline’ or ‘ill’. Those classified as psychiatrically ‘ill’ were significantly more likely to report recent contact with both general practitioners and certain personal social services than were those classified as psychiatrically ‘normal’. Intermediate levels of contact were found among those classified as borderline (between normal and ill). The prescription and use of psychotropic drugs showed a similar mental health gradient. While SAD scores were positively and significantly related to the number of reported physical health problems, the overall correlation between mental and physical health scales was modest (rho = 0.41, p < 0.001). These results indicate that while mental health problems are clearly influential in determining family doctor consultations among the elderly, a substantial number of emotionally disturbed elderly people do not consult their general practitioners during the currency of their symptoms.