Tegegne Kindie Mekuria, Demeke Solomon Moges, Lemma Mekonnin Tesfa, Kassie Ayelign Mengesha
Department of Psychiatry, College of Health Science, Woldia University, P.O. Box 400, Woldia, Ethiopia.
School of Nursing, College of Health Sciences, Woldia University, P.O. Box 400, Woldia, Ethiopia.
Depress Res Treat. 2023 Jun 26;2023:2612900. doi: 10.1155/2023/2612900. eCollection 2023.
Depression is a psychiatric disorder that is characterized by persistent sadness and a lack of interest or pleasure in previously rewarding and enjoyable activities. It is one of the leading mental disorders among prisoners worldwide. However, little attention is given to this condition, especially in developing countries. Hence, this study was aimed at assessing the prevalence of depression and its associated factors among prisoners in North Wollo Zone Correctional Institutions, Ethiopia.
A cross-sectional study was carried out among 407 prisoners from November 20 to December 20, 2020. A simple random sampling technique was employed to select the study participants, and the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) was utilized to measure the prevalence of depression among prisoners. Data analyses were done using SPSS version 20 software program. Descriptive and inferential statistics including bivariate and multivariable regression analyses were run to assess the association between depression and the independent variables, and a value of less than 0.05 was taken to declare statistically significant values.
A total of 407 prisoners participated in the study, making the response rate 96.9%. The mean age of the participants was 31.7 ± 12.83. Forty-one percent of them were between the ages of 18 and 27 years. In this study, the prevalence of depression was 55.5%. Age 38-47 (AOR = 4.29; 95%CI = 1.51, 12.20), having children (AOR = 2.75; 95%CI = 1.40, 5.42), sentences for 5-10 years and over 10 years (AOR = 6.26; 95%CI = 3.19, 12.30 and AOR = 7.71; 95%CI = 3.47, 17.17, respectively), having a history of mental illness (AOR = 5.22; 95%CI = 2.39, 11.36), having two or more stressful life events (AOR = 6.61; 95%CI = 2.73, 15.96), and poor social support (AOR = 8.13; 95%CI = 3.43, 19.27) were significantly associated with depression.
In this study, more than half of the study participants were found having depression which is relatively higher compared with other previous studies across the globe. Moreover, different variables including the inmate's age of 38-47 years, having children, a sentence of 5-10 and over 10 years, history of mental illness, having two or more stressful life events, and poor social support were factors significantly associated with depression. Thus, awareness creation for police officers and prison managers about depression screening in prison and treatment programs including psychological counseling and cognitive behavioral therapy for prisoners are recommended.
抑郁症是一种精神障碍，其特征为持续的悲伤以及对先前有意义且愉快的活动缺乏兴趣或愉悦感。它是全球囚犯中主要的精神障碍之一。然而，这种情况很少受到关注，尤其是在发展中国家。因此，本研究旨在评估埃塞俄比亚北沃洛地区惩教机构囚犯中抑郁症的患病率及其相关因素。
于2020年11月20日至12月20日对407名囚犯进行了一项横断面研究。采用简单随机抽样技术选取研究参与者，并使用患者健康问卷-9（PHQ-9）来测量囚犯中抑郁症的患病率。使用SPSS 20版软件程序进行数据分析。进行了包括双变量和多变量回归分析在内的描述性和推断性统计，以评估抑郁症与自变量之间的关联，取值小于0.05被视为具有统计学显著值。
共有407名囚犯参与了研究，回复率为96.9%。参与者的平均年龄为31.7±12.83岁。其中41%的人年龄在18至27岁之间。在本研究中，抑郁症的患病率为55.5%。年龄38 - 47岁（比值比[AOR]=4.29；95%置信区间[CI]=1.51, 12.20）、有子女（AOR = 2.75；95%CI = 1.40, 5.42）、刑期为5至10年及超过10年（分别为AOR = 6.26；95%CI = 3.19, 12.30和AOR = 7.71；95%CI = 3.47, 17.17）、有精神疾病史（AOR = 5.22；95%CI = 2.39, 11.36）、有两个或更多压力性生活事件（AOR = 6.61；95%CI = 2.73, 15.96）以及社会支持差（AOR = 8.13；95%CI = 3.43, 19.27）与抑郁症显著相关。
在本研究中，发现超过一半的研究参与者患有抑郁症，与全球其他先前研究相比相对较高。此外，包括38至47岁的囚犯年龄、有子女、刑期为5至10年及超过10年、精神疾病史、有两个或更多压力性生活事件以及社会支持差等不同变量是与抑郁症显著相关的因素。因此，建议提高警察和监狱管理人员对监狱中抑郁症筛查以及为囚犯提供包括心理咨询和认知行为疗法在内的治疗项目的认识。
