Prevalence and factors associated with depression among junior police officers in Kampala metropolitan area

BACKGROUND: Police officers in Uganda are at higher risk of depression due to the exceptionally stressful nature of their work and exposure to trauma, yet there is paucity of evidence on depression and its associated factors among police officers in Uganda. This study, therefore, aimed to determine the prevalence of depression and associated factors among junior police officers in Kampala Metropolitan area (KMP). METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study which involved 266 junior police officers in KMP sampled using multi-stage sampling technique and interviewed using a structured questionnaire. Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) was used to assess depression, and participants with PHQ-9 scores ≥ 10 were considered to have depressive symptoms. Data was entered into Stata version 16.0 for management and analysis. Descriptive statistics were conducted and presented as means, frequencies and percentages while bivariate and multivariate analysis were conducted using Modified Poisson regression and presented as prevalence ratios (PR) with a 95% interval and a P < 0.05 for statistical significance. RESULTS: The mean age of the 266 participants was 36 (SD = 8) years, with prevalence of depression being 31.2% (95% CI 25.9-37.1). The sociodemographic factor significantly associated with depression was working in the field force department, aPR = 2.28 (95%CI 1.17-4.42). The environmental and occupational factors significantly associated with depression were working in rural areas, aPR = 2.11 (95%CI 1.08-4.14) and history of experiencing traumatic incidents, aPR = 2.56 (95%CI 1.45-4.53). CONCLUSION: This study found the prevalence of depression among junior police officers in KMP to be higher compared to the global prevalence of depression among police officers, and to findings from several studies in other population settings. Working in the field force unit, rural areas and history of experience trauma were significantly associated with depression among the junior police officers. There is a need for the Uganda police force to create friendly working environment with flexible work schedules and put in place mechanisms to support officers experiencing trauma at workplace.