Depression in adult’s population is often under-diagnosed by healthcare professionals working in the primary healthcare or non-mental health settings in Nigeria. There is capacity problem and poor understanding of the screening process, and no clear action plan or guideline to sustain depression screening in primary healthcare settings in Nigeria. The efforts to improve depression screening services remains suboptimal, and the barriers continue to be poorly understood partly due to the perception of the primary healthcare workers. This study is a scoping review aimed at identifying the gap in literature on primary healthcare workers’ perception and adults’ depression screening. The methodology used followed the scoping review framework developed by Arksey and O’Malley. Four databases (CINAHL, PubMed, EBSCO, Psychinfo) were searched with related terms. A total of 453 articles were retrieved and screened. The 74 articles that met inclusion criteria were selected for full text review and data extraction after duplicate removal. Studies published in 2017 or earlier, or as a case reports, and those not published in English were excluded. Data were extracted using criteria (study objective, setting/design, gap addressed, and main findings). The results revealed that a total of 24 articles were included, and (5/24, 21%) analyzed on perception, tools for depression in adults (8/24, 33%). Depression screening intervention with apps, Smartphone, and algorithm (6/24, 25%); and screening intervention with depression standardized scales (5/24, 21%). In conclusion, the future research needs to address the knowledge gap on relationship between primary healthcare workers perception and depression screening in Nigeria.

Keywords: Depression screening, perception, primary healthcare workers, Nigeria