New mental health survey to test for more psychiatric conditions
TODAY file photo
SINGAPORE — The second nationwide study on the state of mental health in the country will surpass its 2010 predecessor in breadth and depth, with questions on four more psychiatric conditions added to the survey that will cover about 6,000 people aged 18 and above.
The new features in the Singapore Mental Health Study (SMHS) 2016 — a joint effort between the Institute of Mental Health (IMH), Ministry of Health, and Nanyang Technological University — will test for schizophrenia and related psychoses, sleep disorders, hoarding and suicidality.
These conditions are included as they have been increasingly highlighted in local and foreign media, said IMH Adjunct Associate Professor Mythily Subramaniam, the study’s co-principal investigator.
“We are not able to have a good idea of what is the extent of the problem. We do see these could be emerging problems but no proper study with a good sample size has been done for us to make a call on it,” she said.
It is worth studying conditions such as hoarding as they not only affect the hoarder but also those around him or her, especially with Singapore’s “unique housing structure”, Assoc Prof Subramaniam added.
Face-to-face surveys, which started last month, will conclude in December next year. The surveys also include components in the previous study, such as questionnaires related to anxiety disorders, alcohol use, and mood disorders.
Professor Chong Siow Ann, the study’s principal investigator, noted that continuous population growth has resulted in a need to “review the state of the population’s mental health”.
“The study will provide those vital information that are needed to provide even better care for those individuals with mental health issues, better help their caregivers, and enable us to build resilient communities in an ever-challenging world,” she said.
The S$4.9 million study also aims to pinpoint areas of unmet needs, facilitators and barriers to mental health treatment, and to estimate the economic costs associated with mental health.
Costs will be computed based on medical expenses — such as for consultations and treatment — and productivity losses, said Assoc Prof Subramaniam.
The survey’s findings are expected to be released in August 2018.
The inaugural edition of SMHS, which surveyed more than 6,500 respondents aged 18 and above in 2010, found that the top three most prevalent mental conditions were major depressive disorder, alcohol abuse and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).
The prevalence of most mental illnesses here is “much lower” than countries in the West, such as Australia and the United States, said Assoc Prof Subramaniam.
However, OCD — an anxiety disorder due to genetic and environmental factors, resulting in actions such as repetitive hand-washing— is more prevalent here as compared to the US.
