Kebede, Derege (PhD)Tadesse, Belayneh2018-07-062023-11-052018-07-062023-11-051995-05http://etd.aau.edu.et/handle/123456789/6871Mental health problems of chldren in Ethiopia is not known. A survey was conducted in Ambo woreda, western Ethiopia. Mothers o f 3001 children aged 5-15 years were interviewed for their children mental status using a WHO standardized screening instrument (RQC) And both mothers and fathers (n;2223) were also interviewed for their own mental status using a WHO standardized screening instrument (SRQ). A psychiatrist interviewed 196 children initially screened by the RQC to evaluate the validity of RQC. The study showed that a cut off poi nt which maximized sensitivity (87 .5%) and specificity (65%) of the screening instrument (RQC) was found to be at 0/1, that is one yes answer to any of ten question s . The preval ence of the various mental disorders using RQC at a cut off point (0/1) were therefore estimated . Out of 3001 children, 534 (17.7%) were found to have mental disorder. Males (19.2%) and females (16.4%). Headache 332(11.1%) and Nervousness 123(4.1%) were the most frequently reported symptoms by mothers. After adjusting for potential confounders age of children was found to be associated with mental disorder and that this association was statistical ly significant. Maternal age, marital status and parental psychopathol ogy were also significantly associated with mental disorder of their children. The findings show that mental disorders in children in this population are as common as elsewhere in developed and developing countries . Mental health services in this and other communities need to be initiated as soon as possible.enCommunity Based Study of Mental Disorder in ChildrenThesis