Portuguese nurses’ mental health literacy about depression: A descriptive cross-sectional study

INTRODUCTION: Over the past decade, extensive evidence has pointed to a high prevalence of mental health issues among nurses, particularly stress, anxiety, depression, and burnout. At the same time, there has been a call to assess nurses' mental health literacy (MHL) and prioritize initiatives that promote MHL, which could improve their mental health. To evaluate the mental health literacy regarding depression of Portuguese nurses working in a hospital setting.
METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted with nurses in Portugal. Mental health literacy was evaluated using QuALiSMental for depression. Summary statistics (e.g., percentage distributions) were calculated using SPSS 28. A point estimate and confidence interval for the proportion were used for inference. STROBE guidelines were used to report the study.
RESULTS: A total of 483 nurses completed the Questionnaire for Assessment of Mental Health Literacy (QuALiSMental). The results show good MHL, with a particular emphasis on recognizing depression (95% CI: 78.77–85.62). However, these values are not extendable to all components of MHL, with notable gaps in knowledge regarding some mental health first-aid strategies.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The results observed in this study, although still distant from what is considered optimal, show—com-pared to other studies conducted in different contexts using similar methodologies—that nurses' MHL levels are generally positive. Adequate levels of MHL can contribute to using this knowledge to benefit one's mental health and that of others with whom they interact in their personal and professional daily lives. In the case of depression, adequate levels of MHL can help reduce the time between the onset of the first signs and symptoms and the provision of specialized help, potentially preventing the worsening of suffering and the progression to chronic situations.