Mental Health Epidemiology

A 34-year-old woman from rural Maharashtra presents to the primary health centre with complaints of persistent sadness, loss of interest in household activities, and sleep disturbance for the past 8 months. She reports feeling worthless and has recurrent thoughts of death, though denies any active plan or intent. Her husband attributes her symptoms to 'weakness' and believes she should 'just work harder'. On examination, she appears withdrawn, with psychomotor retardation. She has no significant past medical history and denies substance use. What is the most appropriate public health classification of her current mental health status based on epidemiological burden assessment?

According to the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019, which mental health disorder accounts for the highest disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) among non-communicable diseases in India?

A 28-year-old man from urban Delhi attends a mental health awareness camp organized by the district health department. During screening with the General Health Questionnaire-12 (GHQ-12), he scores 4 (threshold for caseness = 3). On detailed interview, he reports 3 months of persistent worry about his job performance, difficulty concentrating at work, muscle tension, and sleep disturbance. He denies panic attacks, agoraphobia, or specific phobias. His symptoms are causing significant impairment in work productivity but he continues to function. What is the epidemiological classification of this presentation?

According to the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2019 study, which mental health disorder ranks as the leading cause of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) among mental health conditions globally?

A 34-year-old woman from rural Maharashtra presents to the primary health centre with a 6-month history of persistent sadness, loss of interest in household activities, poor sleep, and feelings of worthlessness. She has no past psychiatric history. On examination, she appears withdrawn and makes poor eye contact. Her husband reports she has become increasingly dependent on him for daily tasks. The PHC worker screens her using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) and obtains a score of 18. What is the most appropriate next step in management at the primary health centre level?