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Indicators for health education in Scotland; summary of findings from the 1996 Health Education Population Survey (HEPS)

Contents:Introduction
The Health Education Population Survey
Disease prevention
Behavioural risk factors
Stages of behaviour change
Smoking
Diet / nutrition
Physical activity
Mental health
Accidents / safety
Dental / oral health
Sexual health
Alcohol
Drug misuse
Conclusions
References

Mental health

Mental health has been identified as one of the top priorities for the NHS in Scotland. A strategic statement for mental health promotion is currently being developed by HEBS, and the September 1997 HEPS will include a mental health module in order to contribute toward the development of appropriate indicators for mental health promotion. At present, the only mental health indicator in HEPS consists of the 12 item version of the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ12) which is scored on a scale from 0 to 12. This questionnaire has been widely used in general population surveys in order to assess levels of psychological morbidity (Bowling, 1991).

When using the GHQ12 as a screening instrument to detect the presence of mental illness, the generally recommended threshold score is 1 or 2 (Goldberg and Williams, 1988). For this survey, a score of more than 2 is taken as an indicator of potential mental health distress. The mean score is also useful in terms of comparing populations or assessing changes over time (Bowling, 1991).

Health status indicator:

  • The proportion of people aged 16-74 with a GHQ12 score greater than 2
  • Mean GHQ12 score.

Twenty four percent of respondents had a GHQ12 score greater than 2, while the overall mean score was 1.75.



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