General Practitioners might be able to better identify people suffering from underlying illnesses, after scientists at the Otago University were able to find a strong diagnostic test. It was also revealed in the study that women were better at managing a mental illness like depression.

One of the researchers involved in the study, Dr. Kate Scott from the Otago University stated that doctors should try to asses a person’s overall functioning, rather than just trying to know about the physical health of a person. She added that trying to get an insight into the severity and the reason behind a person’s habits can help doctors, better in understanding the ailment of a patient.

Apart from Dr. Kate Scott, Associate Prof. Sunny Collings was also a fellow researcher in the study. The research work by the duo has already been published in the Journal of Affective Disorders. Authors claimed that the study was a groundbreaking one and could help in better understanding mental ailments.

Talking about how women handled mental disabilities better, Dr. Scott said that though women are at a greater risk of suffering from mental disorders. But, their study has been able to establish that such disorders had a more severe affect on men rather than the fairer sex and the negating cognitive affects of mental disorders were more pronounced in men.