Prevalence of anxiety and depression in Abu Dhabi residents in the year 2019 (a pilot study)

Background and aim In the past, inattentively mental health disorders were not addressed properly owing to several factors. Despite that, depression and anxiety are commonly seen in the general practice, and there are no statistical data that reflect the effect of this problem. This is a pilot study that aims to reveal the percentage of depression and anxiety among the general population of Abu Dhabi. Patients and methods This is a cross-sectional pilot study with a sample size of 176 individuals; the P value was set to be 0.05, and confidence interval is 95%. The data tools are self-administered questionnaires focusing on Patient Health Questionnaire 2 and 9 and General Anxiety Disorder 7 scale distributed to visitors attending Mediclinic Hospitals. Data analysis was done by using Statistical Package for Social Science. Results The study showed that 53.98% of Abu Dhabi residents screened were negative for depression, whereas 46.02% were positive. Moreover, 62.50% of Abu Dhabi residents screened were found to have mild anxiety, 31.25% as moderate anxiety, and 6.25% had severe anxiety. Conclusion There are emerging cases of depression and anxiety among Abu Dhabi residents, and further wide screening programs are required to be implemented to reduce the mental health-related sicknesses and empower the human nature with positive thinking attitude and well-being.