TY - JOUR
T1 - Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Primary Care
T2 - A Study of General Practices in England
AU - Cowlishaw, Sean
AU - Metcalf, Olivia
AU - Stone, Caleb
AU - O’Donnell, Meaghan
AU - Lotzin, Annett
AU - Forbes, David
AU - Hegarty, Kelsey
AU - Kessler, David
N1 - Funding Information:
The original data collection was funded by a grant awarded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) School for Primary Care Research. The production of current paper was not associated with any specific grant funding. The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.
PY - 2021/9
Y1 - 2021/9
N2 - Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) may be a common issue in primary care in the UK, but there have been no studies of all-cause PTSD in general samples of attenders in this country. The current paper thus explores the extent and distribution of probable PTSD among patients attending general practices in England. Cross-sectional survey data from adult patients (n = 1058) attending 11 general practices in southwest England were analysed. Patients were recruited from waiting rooms and completed anonymous questionnaires, including measures of depression, anxiety and risky alcohol use. Current probable PTSD was measured using the 4-item Primary Care PTSD Scale (PC-PTSD). Results indicated 15.1% of patients that exhibited probable PTSD (PC-PTSD ≥ 3), with higher levels observed in practices from deprived areas. There were 53.8% of patients with probable PTSD that expressed the desire for help with these issues. The analyses suggested that rates were lowest among older adults, and highest among patients who were not in cohabitating relationships or were unemployed. Measures of anxiety and depression were associated with 10-fold and 16-fold increases in risk of probable PTSD, respectively, although there were no discernible associations with risky drinking. Such preliminary findings highlight the need for vigilance for PTSD in routine general practice in the UK, and signal a strong need for additional research and attention in this context.
AB - Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) may be a common issue in primary care in the UK, but there have been no studies of all-cause PTSD in general samples of attenders in this country. The current paper thus explores the extent and distribution of probable PTSD among patients attending general practices in England. Cross-sectional survey data from adult patients (n = 1058) attending 11 general practices in southwest England were analysed. Patients were recruited from waiting rooms and completed anonymous questionnaires, including measures of depression, anxiety and risky alcohol use. Current probable PTSD was measured using the 4-item Primary Care PTSD Scale (PC-PTSD). Results indicated 15.1% of patients that exhibited probable PTSD (PC-PTSD ≥ 3), with higher levels observed in practices from deprived areas. There were 53.8% of patients with probable PTSD that expressed the desire for help with these issues. The analyses suggested that rates were lowest among older adults, and highest among patients who were not in cohabitating relationships or were unemployed. Measures of anxiety and depression were associated with 10-fold and 16-fold increases in risk of probable PTSD, respectively, although there were no discernible associations with risky drinking. Such preliminary findings highlight the need for vigilance for PTSD in routine general practice in the UK, and signal a strong need for additional research and attention in this context.
KW - Anxiety
KW - Cross-sectional study
KW - Depression
KW - Primary care
KW - PTSD
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85087495724&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s10880-020-09732-6
DO - 10.1007/s10880-020-09732-6
M3 - Article
C2 - 32592119
AN - SCOPUS:85087495724
SN - 1068-9583
VL - 28
SP - 427
EP - 435
JO - Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings
JF - Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings
IS - 3
ER -