Treatment Contact Coverage for Probable Depressive and Probable Alcohol Use Disorders in Four Low- and Middle-Income Country Districts: The PRIME Cross-Sectional Community Surveys

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 11; no. 9; p. e0162038
• Main Authors: Rathod, Sujit D, De Silva, Mary J, Ssebunnya, Joshua, Breuer, Erica, Murhar, Vaibhav, Luitel, Nagendra P, Medhin, Girmay, Kigozi, Fred, Shidhaye, Rahul, Fekadu, Abebaw, Jordans, Mark, Patel, Vikram, Tomlinson, Mark, Lund, Crick
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 15.09.2016; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Adult; Adults; Alcohol use; Alcohol-Related Disorders - therapy; Alcohols; Care and treatment; Cross-Sectional Studies; Depression (Mood disorder); Depression - therapy; Disorders; Drinking (Alcoholic beverages); Editors; Ethiopia; Female; Health care; Humans; Hygiene; Income; India; Low income groups; Male; Medical research; Medicine and Health Sciences; Mental depression; Mental disorders; Mental health; Mental health care; Mental health services; Middle Aged; Nepal; Neurosciences; People and Places; Physical Sciences; Polls & surveys; Population; Primary care; Psychiatry; Psychological aspects; Public health; Quantitative psychology; Researchers; South Africa; Studies; Substance abuse treatment; Surveys; Surveys and Questionnaires; Teaching hospitals; Uganda; India; Netherlands; United Kingdom > UK; South Africa; Uganda; Kampala Uganda; Nepal; Ethiopia; Addis Ababa Ethiopia
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0162038

A robust evidence base is now emerging that indicates that treatment for depression and alcohol use disorders (AUD) delivered in low and middle-income countries (LMIC) can be effective. However, the coverage of services for these conditions in most LMIC settings remains unknown. To describe the methods of a repeat cross-sectional survey to determine changes in treatment contact coverage for probable depression and for probable AUD in four LMIC districts, and to present the baseline findings regarding treatment contact coverage. Population-based cross-sectional surveys with structured questionnaires, which included validated screening tools to identify probable cases. We defined contact coverage as being the proportion of cases who sought professional help in the past 12 months. Sodo District, Ethiopia; Sehore District, India; Chitwan District, Nepal; and Kamuli District, Uganda. 8036 adults residing in these districts between May 2013 and May 2014. Treatment contact coverage was defined as having sought care from a specialist, generalist, or other health care provider for symptoms related to depression or AUD. The proportion of adults who screened positive for depression over the past 12 months ranged from 11.2% in Nepal to 29.7% in India and treatment contact coverage over the past 12 months ranged between 8.1% in Nepal to 23.5% in India. In Ethiopia, lifetime contact coverage for probable depression was 23.7%. The proportion of adults who screened positive for AUD over the past 12 months ranged from 1.7% in Uganda to 13.9% in Ethiopia and treatment contact coverage over the past 12 months ranged from 2.8% in India to 5.1% in Nepal. In Ethiopia, lifetime contact coverage for probable AUD was 13.1%. Our findings are consistent with and contribute to the limited evidence base which indicates low treatment contact coverage for depression and for AUD in LMIC. The planned follow up surveys will be used to estimate the change in contact coverage coinciding with the implementation of district-level mental health care plans.