Similar to general health, general mental health measures a person's subjective opinion of their mental health. The reference is to mental health in general rather than the present state of mental health, therefore it is not intended to measure temporary mental health problems.
Reporting of 'bad' or 'very bad' general mental health was more likely with younger age groups. Females aged 15 to 24 years had the highest prevalence, with one in eight (12.8%) rating their mental health as 'bad' or 'very bad'.
The lowest rates were observed in the 65 to 74 years age group, where 2.0% of females and 1.3% of males reported 'bad' or 'very bad' mental health.
One in 14 (6.9%) needed a mental health consultation or treatment on at least one occasion during the previous 12 months but did not receive it. There could be many reasons why an appointment was not received such as affordability, waiting lists, being too busy and so on. The highest rates were in the Dublin and Northeast (8.6%), and Midwest health regions (8.5%). The lowest rate was the Southwest health region (4.9%).
Females were more likely to have visited either a psychiatrist, psychologist or psychotherapist in the past 12 months with one fifth (21.9%) of females aged 25 to 34 years having done so.
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