TY - JOUR
AR - PDR-2018-1-104
TI - Depression and Anxiety identified to be the Most Commonly Reported Mental Health problems by General Practitioners
AU - Lidija , Petrović-Dovat
AU - Nina , Smiljanić
AU - Petrović-Bodor, Olivera 
JO - Psychological Disorders and Research
PY - 2018
DA - Sun 24, Jun 2018
SN - 2674-2470
DO - http://dx.doi.org/10.31487/j.PDR.2018.10.004
UR - https://www.sciencerepository.org/depression-and-anxiety-identified-to-be-the-most-commonly-reported-mental-health-problems-by-general-practitioners_PDR-1-104 
KW - General practitioner, psychological problems, psychiatric problems,depression,anxiety,antidepressant drugs,education
AB - Introduction: General practitioners (GPs) regularly provide care for adult patients with
psychological/psychiatric problems and prescribe appropriate medications (either independently or in
consultation with a psychiatrist).
Objectives: We established a list of the most common mental health problems GPs encounter during daily
practice and suggested solutions to increase their competence in identifying and selecting appropriate
treatments.
Methods: We designed and conducted a voluntary survey; we collected data from 55 outpatient GPs at
multiple outpatient clinics in Novi Sad, Serbia, which has a Universal Health Care System. Collected data
were analyzed using including descriptive and analytical statistics.
Results: Psychological/psychiatric problems were most commonly identified during GPs’ interviews with
patients (70.9%) and by utilizing evidence-based behavioral health-screening instruments. Anxiety (80.0%)
and depression/depressed mood (78.2%) were the two most frequently reported problems. To increase
competence in diagnosing and treating patients with psychological/psychiatric problems, 76.3% of GPs
identified the need for additional educational opportunities that address psychotropic medications used for
depression, and 54.5% identified the need for topics related to initiating and managing antidepressant
therapy.
Conclusions: The most common psychological/psychiatric problems that GPs encounter in their practice
are anxiety and depression. To increase competency in treating these problems, GPs will benefit from
additional learning opportunities and training related to assessment and pharmacological treatment of
patients with depression and anxiety disorders.