Perfil sociodemográfico, ocupacional e avaliação das condições de saúde mental dos trabalhadores da Estratégia Saúde da Família em um município do Rio Grande do Sul, RS

Objective: The purpose of this study was to measure the prevalence of common mental health disorders among employees of the Family Health Strategy in Santa Cruz do Sul, RS, and to describe sociodemographic and occupational factors associated with these disorders. Methods: This was a cross-sectional, quantitative study, conducted from June to August 2013. In total, 83 employees, who worked at 11 family health units in the city, participated. Participants included doctors, nurses, technicians/nursing assistants, and community health workers. The survey was conducted using a self-administered questionnaire about sociodemographic and occupational issues as well as the matters related to the Self-Reporting Questionnaire. Results: The average age of participants was 37.1±8.9 years. The majority of community health workers were female workers who were married, had children, had a per capita income of up to 2 minimum wages, and had completed high school. The general prevalence of common mental health disorders was 19.7%. Mental health disorders were present in all occupational categories, but were more frequent among male nurses (25%), although this was not statistically significant. Conclusion: This study, in addition to characterizing the population of employees of the Family Health Strategy in Santa Cruz do Sul, RS, in terms of demographic and occupational characteristics, found that psychological distress was present, to varying degrees, in all professional categories evaluated. Given the high prevalence of mental health disorders among these employees, measures are required to ensure the protection and promotion of mental health in this setting.