title: Development and preliminary validation of an Observation List for detecting mental disorders and social Problems in the elderly in primary and home care (OLP).
abstract: Even though the prevalence of mental disorders and social problems is high among elderly patients, it is difficult to detect these in a primary (home) care setting. Goal was the development and preliminary validation of a short observation list to detect six problem areas: anxiety, depression, cognition, suspicion, loneliness, and somatisation.
  
  
  
  A draft list of indicators identified from a short review of the literature and the opinions of 22 experts was evaluated by general practitioners (GPs) and home care organisations for feasibility. It was then used by GPs and home care personnel to observe patients, who also completed validated tests for psychological disorders (General Health Questionnaire 12 item version (GHQ-12)), depression (Geriatric Depression Scale 15-item version (GDS-15)), anxiety and suspicion (Symptom Checklist-90 (SCL-90)), loneliness (University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)), somatisation (Illness Attitude Scale (IAS)), and cognition (Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE)).
  
  
  
  GPs and home care personnel observed 180 patients (mean age 78.4 years; 66% female) and evaluated the draft list during a regular visit. Cronbach's α was 0.87 for the draft list and ≥0.80 for the draft problem areas (loneliness and suspicion excepted). Principal component analysis identified six components (cognition, depression + loneliness, somatisation, anxiety + suspicion, depression (other signs), and an ambiguous component). Convergent validity was shown for the indicators list as a whole (using the GHQ-12), and the subscales of depression, anxiety, loneliness, cognition, and somatisation. Using pre-set agreed criteria, the list was reduced to 14 final indicators divided over five problem areas.
  
  
  
  The Observation List for mental disorders and social Problems (OLP) proved to be preliminarily valid, reliable, and feasible for use in primary and home care settings. Copyright © John Wliey & Sons, Ltd.
authors.affiliation: TNO (Netherlands organisation for applied scientific research) Department Lifestyle, Leiden, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Erwin C P M
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Tak
authors.affiliation: TNO (Netherlands organisation for applied scientific research) Department Lifestyle, Leiden, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Ariëtte T H
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: van Hespen
authors.affiliation: NIVEL (Netherlands Institute for health services research), Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Peter F M
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Verhaak
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health and Primary Care, LUMC (Leiden University Medical Center), Leiden, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Just
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Eekhof
authors.affiliation: TNO (Netherlands organisation for applied scientific research) Department Lifestyle, Leiden, The Netherlands.|Department of Public and Occupational Health, EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Marijke
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hopman-Rock
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D060825:Cognitive Dysfunction / Q000175:diagnosis; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008132:Loneliness / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D015995:Prevalence; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: ageing; mental disorder; observation; primary care; social problems; validation