Depression screening program

The program consisted of screening with the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire PHQ-9 and algorithm-based scoring and referral to behavioral health services based on low, moderate, or high score. Clinical teams at tailored intervention sites received program education, audit, and feedback of performance data and implementation facilitation, and clinical workflows were adapted to suit local context.

Education-only controls sites received program education. Main Outcomes and Measures The primary outcome was percent of eligible patients screened and referred based on PHQ-9 score at intervention vs control groups measured at the patient level. Secondary outcomes included outpatient health care utilization for behavioral health, primary care, oncology, urgent care, and emergency department.

Results All eligible patients were randomized at the center level mean age, Groups were similar in demographic and tumor characteristics.

For the primary outcome, 7. In adjusted models patients at tailored sites had significantly fewer outpatient visits in medical oncology rate ratio, 0. Conclusions and Relevance Among patients with breast cancer treated in community-based oncology practices, tailored strategies for implementation of routine depression screening compared with an education-only control group resulted in a greater proportion of referrals to behavioral care.

Further research is needed to understand the clinical benefit and cost-effectiveness of this program. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials. Coronavirus Resource Center. Our website uses cookies to enhance your experience. By continuing to use our site, or clicking "Continue," you are agreeing to our Cookie Policy Continue.

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A mental health professional will contact you within 1 week to review your score and discuss treatment options. Volunteer-based counseling program offered to older adults who would benefit from one-on-one emotional support. No experience is necessary; training and ongoing support are provided.

These lists are only suggested approaches that may be useful in designing an evaluation plan. These measures are designed for employee group assessment. In general, data from the previous 12 months will provide sufficient baseline information and can be used in establishing the program goals and objectives in the planning phase, and in assessing progress toward goals in the evaluation phase.

Ongoing measurements every 6 to 12 months after programs begin are usually appropriate measurement intervals, but measurement timing should be adapted to the expectations of the specific program. The mental health of workers is an area of increasing concern to organizations.

Depression is a major cause of disability, absenteeism, presenteeism, and productivity loss among working-age adults. Depression is a complex condition characterized by changes in thinking, mood, or behavior that can affect anyone. Depression is influenced by a number of factors such as genetics; physiology e. Depression in working populations is equally complex and the causes are not well understood. Evidence linking work organization with depression and other mental health problems, and with increased productivity losses, is beginning to accumulate.

A number of studies of a diverse group of occupations have identified several job stressors e. Although the evidence is mounting of the links between job stress and depression, there is less evidence of effective interventions to prevent depression in the workplace.

There is a need to better understand organizational practices to reduce job stress, and aspects of job design that contribute to poor mental health, so that interventions can be developed to interventions that effectively target these risk factors in the workplace. In addition to its direct medical and workplace costs, depression also increases health care costs and lost productivity indirectly by contributing to the severity of other costly conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.

However, routine, systematic clinical screening can successfully identify patients who are depressed, allowing them to access care earlier in the course of their illnesses.

The cost-utility of screening for depression in primary care.