Wondale Getinet Alemu, Yewunetu Dessalegn Malefiya, Berhanu Boru Bifftu
Background: Mental distress is a state that manifests from anxiety, depression or unexplained somatic symptoms and is typically encountered in community and health care settings.
Methods: Institution based, cross-sectional study was conducted among 418 hospital patients at Gondar University Hospital from April 15 to May 15 in 2013. Participants were selected using a systematic randomsampling technique. Semi-structured questionnaires were used to collect social, demographic and clinical data. Mental distress was measured with a Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-25). Binary logistic regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with distress.
Results: Prevalence of mental distress was 58.6% among hospital admitted patients. In the group, 237 (56.7%) were male. Individuals with a history of previous hospital admission, we used an adjusted odds ratio (AOR) and a confidence interval (CI) [AOR=1.7, 95% CI (1.11, 2.73)]. These patients also tended to be female [AOR=2, 95% CI (1.26, 3.12)] and were more likely to have distress (than those without previous hospital admissions). Widowers [AOR=2.8, 95% CI (1.1, 7.20)] who used tobacco [AOR=4, 95% CI (1.1, 15.28), alcohol [AOR=3, 95% CI (1.82, 4.69)] or had hospital stays of one to two weeks [AOR=2.3, 95% CI (1.4, 3.8)] also had more distress. When hospital stays three to four weeks [AOR=2, 95%, CI (1.18, 3.93)], distress levels significantly increased compared to those who were single (and did not use tobacco or alcohol or have shorter hospital stays, lasting less than a week). Patients who went to primary school [AOR=0.5, 95% CI (0.26, 0.93)] and secondary school [AOR=0.4, 95% CI (0.26, 0.85)] were less likely to experience distress than those unable to read and write.
Conclusion: Prevalence of mental distress was quite high among patients admitted to a hospital. Factors included being female, being widowed and having a history of previous hospital admissions. Individuals who were illiterate, had substance abuse, or concerned about the length of their hospital stay encountered even greater distress levels.
