Table 1.
Numbering, questions and administration instructions | Definition of a positive screen | Disorder | |
---|---|---|---|
Step One Questions | 1. In the last 2 weeks, how often have you been feeling down, depressed, or hopeless? | ≥ “Several days” to any of the three questions | CMD |
2. In the last 2 weeks, how often have you been feeling nervous, anxious, or on edge? | Does not inform a specific disorder a | ||
3. In the last 2 weeks, how often have you been so restless that it’s hard to sit still? | CMD | ||
POSITIVE to questions 1 or 2 or 3, CONTINUE SCREENING. If NEGATIVE for all three, STOP. If POSITIVE to question 2, but NEGATIVE to questions 5-11, refer to self-help. | |||
Step Two Questions | 4. In the past year, how often do you have a drink containing alcohol? | Anyone (regardless of gender): ≥ “Between 2 and 4 times a month” on Q4 Women: “Monthly or less” on Q4 and ≥ “3 or 4” on Q5 Men: “Monthly or less” on Q4 and ≥ “5 or 6” on Q5 |
AUD |
5. In the past year, how many drinks containing alcohol do you have on a typical day when you are drinking? | |||
6. In the past year, how many times have you used a recreational or illegal drug or used a prescription medication for non-medical reasons? | ≥ “Once or twice” | SUD | |
5. In the past year, have you ever felt that your thoughts were being directly interfered with or controlled by some outside force or person in a way that many people would find hard to believe (for instance, through telepathy)? | “Yes” to any of the four questions | SMD | |
6. In the past year, have there been times when you felt that a group of people was plotting to cause you serious harm or injury? | |||
7. In the past year, have there been times when you felt that something so strange was going on that other people would find it very hard to believe? | |||
8. In the past year, did you at any time hear voices saying quite a few words or sentences when there was no one around that might account for it? | |||
9. In the past month, have you wished you were dead or wished you could go to sleep and not wake up? | “Yes” to any of the three questions | SR | |
10. In the past month, have you had any actual thoughts of killing yourself? | |||
11. In the past 3 months, have you ever done anything, started to do anything, or prepared to do anything to end your life? |
Abbreviations: AUD, alcohol-use disorder; CMD, common mental disorder; SMD, severe mental disorder; SR, suicide risk; SUD, substance use disorder.
While Q1-3 direct continuation to the step two questions for identifying AUD, SUD, and SMD, positive responses to Q1 and/or Q3 are considered indicative of CMD. Of note, endorsing only Q2 and none of the other questions is not indicative of a specific disorder.