The prevalence of depression among Maori patients in Auckland general practice

Abstract

Introduction: There has been concern over high rates of mental illness in Maori. Previous studies in general practice have had small sample sizes. Aim: To determine the prevalence of major depression among Maori patients in Auckland general practice using the CIDI and the PHQ as measurement tools. Methods: This prevalence study is part of a larger randomised trial. The patients were recruited from 77 general practitioners from around Auckland who could provide a private room for interviewing. The patients were invited to participate in the waiting room and all consecutive patients were approached. For this study all patients received a computerised CIDI examination and one third received a PHQ assessment prior to getting the CIDI. The interviewer was blind to the questionnaire results when the patient did the CIDI. Results: There were 7994 patients approached from whom there were data on 7432. The prevalence of Maori in the study was 9.7%. The overall 12-month prevalence of major depression based on the CIDI was 10.1% 95%CI (8.8 to 11.4). For Maori the prevalence was 11.5% 95%CI (8.8 to 14.2) and for non-Maori 10.1% 95%CI (8.6 to 11.3). For Maori men and Maori women the prevalence was 8.5% and 13.4% and for non-Maori men and non-Maori women it was 8.3% and 11.1%. The prevalence of depression over at least the previous two weeks on the PHQ ≥9 for all participants was 12.9% 95%CI (11.2 to 14.5). Discussion: The prevalence of depression among Maori is high, but not as high as earlier studies. This may be due to the bigger sample size of this study.