The Saudi National Mental Health Survey: Survey instrument and field procedures

Abstract

Objectives To present an overview of the survey and field procedures developed for the Saudi National Mental Health Survey (SNMHS). Methods The SNMHS is a face‐to‐face community epidemiological survey of DSM‐IV mental disorders in a nationally representative sample of the household population in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) (n = 4,004). The SNMHS was implemented as part of the WHO World Mental Health (WMH) Survey Initiative. WMH carries out coordinated psychiatric epidemiological surveys in countries throughout the world using standardized procedures designed to provide valid cross‐national comparative data on prevalence and correlates of common mental disorders. However, these procedures need to be adapted to the unique experiences in each country. We focus here on the adaptations made for the SNMHS. Results Modifications were needed to several interview sections and expansions were needed to address issues of special policy importance in KSA. Several special field implementation challenges also had to be addressed because of the need for female interviewers to travel with male escorts and for respondents to be interviewed by interviewers of the same gender. Conclusions Thoughtful revisions led to a high‐quality field implementation in the SNMHS.

Psychological distress reported by healthcare workers in Saudi Arabia during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study

“…The K6, a psychometrically reliable and valid scale, which was used in the Saudi National Mental Health Survey questionnaire the CIDI 3.0 and validated for use in KSA [ 32 , 33 ], was used to measure psychological distress; the scale is reported to be a well-known indicator correlated with the presence of a diagnosable mental illness [ 34 – 36 ]. Participants were asked to consider the past month and to report how frequently they had experienced the following symptoms: felt nervous, hopeless, restless or fidgety, worthless, depressed, and felt that everything was an effort [ 34 ].…”

The comparative importance of mental and physical disorders for health-related days out of role in the general population of Saudi Arabia

“…The SNMHS sample design [ 6 ] and field procedures [ 21 ] have been reported in detail elsewhere. In brief, though, the survey was based on a stratified multistage clustered area probability design in which Primary Sampling Units (PSUs) were constructed separately within each of the 11 administrative areas based on census counts based on maps provided and updated by the Ministry of Economy and Planning [ 22 ].…”

Psychotic Experiences and Alternate Dimensions: A Thematic Analysis Exploring Frameworks of Psychotic Symptoms Among Saudis

“…Respondents belonging to this qualitative study were further anonymized with a case number ID. Details of the SNMHS methods can be found elsewhere (Altwaijri et al, 2020).…”