THE USE OF THE HOSPITAL ANXIETY AND DEPRESSION SCALE IN AN OUTPATIENTALCOHOL TREATMENT CLINIC

Objectives: depression treatment centre. Methods: Forty three patients referred to an alcohol outpatient treatment centre completed the HAD which was validated against the external criteria of the Montgomery-As berg Depression Rating Scale and the Clinical Anxiety Scale. Results: The HAD performed well operating at a cut-off of 7/8 for the depressio n scale and for the anxiety scale of the HAD the optimal cut-off value was 10/11. Conclusion: The HAD is acceptable to patients and its use in alcohol treatment clinics is recommended as a screening instrument for anxiety and depression which can easily be administered by non-psy chiatrists.