ABSTRACT

According to the World Health Organization, depression is a mental disorder that is common globally, and increases the global burden of disease, and negatively affects economic growth. The aim of this study is to reveal the levels of antidepressant medication usage and the factors associated with antidepressant use in Türkiye and Germany between 2008 and 2019. Data were obtained from the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) database. Descriptive statistics were used for data analysis. Spearman Correlation Test was used to determine the relationship between antidepressant medication usage and suicide-alcohol-drug related death, alcohol consumption and suicide rate, and Mann Whitney-U test was used to reveal the differences between the two countries. Considering the average distribution of the values of the variables according to the countries; it was detected that the usage of antidepressant medications in Germany is higher than in Türkiye. A strong positively correlation was detected between the usage of antidepressant medications and suicide-alcoholdrug related death, alcohol consumption, and suicide rates. A statistically significant difference was found between the usage of antidepressant medications and suicide-alcohol-drug related death, alcohol consumption and suicide rates by country (p<0.05). Antidepressant medication usage, suicide-alcohol-drug related death, alcohol consumption and suicide rates were found to be higher in Germany compared to Türkiye. As a result of the research, it was determined that as suicide-alcohol-drug related death, alcohol consumption, and suicide rates increase, as the rate of antidepressant medication usage increases for Türkiye and Germany. Reducing the burden of depression on globally requires collaboration between various stakeholders, such as policy makers, the community, health professionals, and researchers.