Preventing Mental Illness: The Role of Primary Care Physicians

GOH LEE GAN Professorial Fellow Division of Family Medicine Department of Medicine National University Health System ABSTRACT Primary care physicians have been providing treatment for patients with mental illnesses such as depression and anxiety. It is recognised that they are also pivotal in the prevention and early detection of mental illnesses. This paper summarises primary care physicians’ roles in the promotion of mental health as well as the primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of mental illnesses.