Conference Proceedings - School of Nursing & Midwifery - Trinity ...

School of Nursing & Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin: 8 th Annual Interdisciplinary Research Conference
Transforming Healthcare Through Research, Education & Technology: 7 th – 9 th November 2007
Conference Proceedings
geographical coverage, an initial set of sampling areas was selected
from the GeoDirectory. This initial sample of areas was then
employed to generate a random telephone sample using random
digit dialling. The survey received ethical approval from the HRB
Research Ethics Committee. In line with best practice the completed
sample was re-weighted to ensure that it was representative of the
population from which it had been selected. Comparisons with
relevant census data showed that the profile of the sample was
comparable to that of the general population aged 18 years and
over.
Aims
The main aims of the survey regarding mental health and service
use were to:
� produce much-needed data in relation to mental health issues
from a representative sample of the population
� determine the proportion of the Irish population who were
experiencing psychological distress or had experienced
psychological distress in the previous year
� describe the help-seeking behaviour of the Irish population
when experiencing mental health problems, including use of
primary care, use of secondary mental health services and use
of other professionals / support persons
� investigate the perceived effectiveness of the support used in
the previous year
� describe the willingness to use professionals / support persons
for mental health problems in the future
Results
A summary of the main findings from the HRB NPWDS are
presented below.
Mental and physical health status and quality of life
The majority of the respondents reported ‘good or very good’
mental health in the past year, with 15% reporting ‘less than good’
mental health. Those aged 50–64 years were most likely to report
less than good mental health. A total of 14% (one in seven) of
respondents reported experiencing mental health problems in the
previous year, with females more likely to report mental health
problems and the youngest and oldest age groups least likely to
report such problems. Current psychological distress, as measured
by the General Health Questionnaire 12 (GHQ12), was evident in a
total of 12% of the sample (one in eight). Again, females were more
likely to exhibit high scores on the GHQ12 as opposed to males, and
the youngest and oldest age groups were least likely to exhibit high
scores.
- 266 -