Burden of common mental disorders in South African workplace settings

Abstract

BACKGROUND : The presence of common mental disorders (CMDs) in the workplace is associated with high costs. However, there are limited current data available on the mental health disease burden in South African workplace settings. Legislation places a responsibility on employers to monitor and manage workplace health and safety, and mental health surveillance initiatives may be one mechanism to achieve that. OBJECTIVES : The objectives of this paper were 1) to describe the burden of certain CMDs in employees who had participated in a mental health surveillance programme, based on the outcomes of validated psychometric tests for CMDs and 2) to compare the prevalence of CMDs measured using self-report scales with assessments from interviews with clinical psychologists. METHODS : This was a record review of employees from various companies contracted to an occupational health provider that conducts general workplace health surveillance, including mental health surveillance. The records contained data collected using validated psychometric measures, and included responses to four screening scales (PHQ-9, GAD-7, PC-PTSD-5 and CAGE) from 2 068 workers in full-time employment. Cronbach alpha coefficients were calculated to determine internal consistency for each scale. Prevalence of CMDs was calculated and reported by sex, age, and occupational category. Associations between CMDs and sex and age were estimated using multinomial logistic regression analysis. We also explored differences between diagnostic outcomes from the four self-report scales and clinical interview outcomes. RESULTS : The mean age of the employees was 34.2 years (20–60 years). More than 35% reported two or more CMDs. The prevalences of alcohol-use disorder, major depressive disorder, and generalised anxiety disorder were 3–4% – comparable with, or lower than, that in the general local population. CONCLUSION : The relatively high prevalence of some CMDs in this study indicates a need for greater awareness of the importance of effective employee assistance programmes in the work-place.