Help-seeking behavior and pathways to care for patients with obsessive-compulsive disorders

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a chronic and debilitating disorder that is relatively common and is associated with a wide range of functional impairments. This is partly associated with delayed help-seeking behavior of OCD patients, which shows a lag of up to 10 years after onset of the obsessive-compulsive symptoms to the first attempt at seeking professional treatment. The reasons for the delay in initial help-seeking behavior by OCD patients are manifold but still not clear. Early detection and early treatment might, however, have beneficial effects on the treatment-seeking behavior. The aim of the study was to examine the help-seeking behavior and the pathways to care of patients with OCD using a modified version of the structured pathways to care questionnaire initially designed for research into schizophrenia. For the 40 outpatients with OCD who completed the interview retrospectively, the latent period between symptom onset and first seeking professional contact was on average 6.5 years, while the median delay to a third attempt at seeking treatment was nearly 15 years. Although the majority of participants consulted a professional neurological and psychotherapeutic practice even at the first attempt and 90 % complained of specific OCD symptoms, only 20 % received the standard treatment consisting of cognitive behavioral therapy and medication with a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI). The most common reason for delaying seeking treatment was that the patient was not convinced of having a mental illness such as OCD and of the necessity for treatment. Even so, approximately 40 % of the participants reported fear of stigmatization and discrimination as a major reason for the delay in the first attempt at seeking help. Psychoeducation and broad utilization of evidence-based treatment still appears necessary and can contribute to improvement in the help-seeking behavior of OCD patients.