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Abstract
Physical illness is commonly associated with psychological distress that may be a direct effect of the illness or an adjustment in coping with the physical illness or its treatment. Little is known about psychological distress of patients on general wards in developing countries. This study aimed to determine the extent and associations of psychological distress among adult in-patients on medical and surgical wards of Mbarara hospital in Uganda. It was a cross sectional descriptive study among 258 adult in-patients. The WHO endorsed self report questionnaire (SRQ-25) was used to assess psychological distress with a cut off of 5/6. The MINI International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) was used to identify specific psychiatric disorders. Cross-tabulations and multivariate analysis was used to analyze the relationship between psychological distress and different factors. One hundred and fifty eight individuals (61%) had psychological distress. One hundred and nine (42%) met criteria for at least one major psychiatric diagnosis. Only 6% of these were recognized by the attending health workers. Psychological distress was significantly associated with previous hospitalizations, ward of admission and marital status. There is a high level of psychological distress among the physically ill and it is often unrecognized and untreated.
Highlights
Psychological problems associated with physical illness in general hospitals are often undetected
The Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) was administered to participants who scored 6 or more on the SRQ-25 to identify specific psychiatric disorders that required specific treatment
Of the 258 patients enrolled into the study, 152 (59%) were on the medical ward while 106 (41%) were on the surgical ward
Summary
Psychological problems associated with physical illness in general hospitals are often undetected. 1, 2, 3, 4 This could due to the direct effect of psychological distress on the physical illness or non-adherence to treatment or a combination of factors. Katorogo[14] reported depression in 35% of the in-patients on the general medical wards with only 20% recognized by the attending doctors and left untreated. This study aimed to assess the extent and associations of psychological distress on medical and surgical wards of Mbarara hospital as a prototype of regional referral hospitals in Uganda. Objectives: This study aimed to determine the extent and associations of psychological distress among adult in-patients on medical and surgical wards of Mbarara hospital in Uganda.
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