Which women seek help for their psychiatric problems?

The avenues of help used by adult women with minor psychiatric morbidity were investigated in a random community survey from five Otago electoral rolls. A random subsample (n = 314) was subsequently interviewed in their homes. Information on a wide range of sociodemographic items pertinent to women's social roles was collected. Psychiatric illness was determined using a recognised structured diagnostic interview. Some 7.8% of the original population was found to have depressive, anxiety or phobic disorders at the symptom intensity level likely to be found in a psychiatric outpatient clinic. Of these women, just over one-third only (35%) said that they had sought help for their illness from any source. Most (86%) getting help received it from their general practitioner. However, unlike overseas studies where virtually all persons with psychiatric disorder consult their general practitioners for some reason, 13% reported that they had not visited their general practitioners at all in the preceding six months. Alternative therapies were infrequently sought. There was no evidence that health services were being inappropriately used by women with nonmedical problems. The results show that the majority of women are not getting treatments they require for their psychiatric illnesses. The low level of help seeking was particularly marked for young women. The findings suggest poor community awareness of the symptoms of minor psychiatric morbidity and the associated psychosocial consequences.