One Year Prevalence of Psychiatric Disorders in Birmingham: The Effect of Ethnicity and Gender

The hospital admission statistics show ethnic and gender variations in the presentation of mental illness. The current investigation was conducted to examine one-year prevalence of psychiatric disorders by gender and ethnicity in Birmingham, UK. Case notes for 992 admissions during January-December, 1995, inclusive to an in-patient unit were reviewed retrospectively. Admission data were broken down by gender and into three ethnic groups: Asian, white, and black. The black group showed the highest psychiatric morbidity rates followed by the Asian, and then white. The three groups appeared to differ in discharge diagnoses. The Black groups consisted of the largest number of patients who were given the diagnosis of schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The incidence of depression appeared to he the highest in the white group compared to the other two groups. Men and women were significant different from each other in discharge diagnoses. The results were discussed in the light of social and cultural factors relevant to ethnicity and gender.