Help Seeking Preferences to Informal and Formal Source of Care for Depression: a Community Based Study in Northwest Ethiopia

Abstract Background: Depression is the leading cause of disability at a population level and globally 350 million people are suffering from depression. Many people suffer from depression use different sources of help for their mental health problems. People with different mental health problems seek help from formal and/or informal sources. This gives crucial information on community,s beliefs and perception regarding their preference for help if they faced depression. This study helps to guide effective planning and provision of mental health services and health policy of the country to explore the community,s preferences of help-seeking. Objective: The aim of this community based cross-sectional study was to contrast patterns of formal and informal help-seeking preferences for depression among residents of Aykel town, Northwest Ethiopia. Methods: This cross-sectional population based study included 832 participants. We used a major depressive disorder case vignette and general help-seeking questionnaire (GHSQ) to assess the preferences to seek help. Study participants were selected by multistage cluster sampling technique. Data were collected by face-to-face interviews. An independent- sample t- test and analysis of variance test (ANOVA) was performed to determine mean score difference in socio-demographic characteristics of the participants for informal sources of help.Results: A total of 656 subjects (78.8%) showed high propensity to intimate partner, and 655 (78.7%) of the study subjects had high propensity to mental health professional. The mean score of the residents’ preference to seek help from informal sources was 3.41±0.60.The mean score of preference to seek help from formal sources was 3.18±0.75. A total of 276 (33.2%) subjects showed high propensity to both informal and formal sources of help. The result also showed that there was mean score difference in preferences to informal help between subjects with strong social support and low and/ moderate social support (P<0.001).Conclusion: The result suggests that the majority of the residents had a higher preference to seek help from informal sources compared to formal sources of care. Mean score difference was observed in degree of social support and occupational status(student,housewife and jobless) for informal sources of help. Providing and strengthening both formal and informal sources of help in conjunction is crucial to get a more qualified and effective care of depressed patients.