Identifying depression among patients presenting in primary care settings needs urgent attention. The absence of inquiry or screening, coupled with the insufficiency of mental health professionals in the same context, makes depression significantly undetected (Akincigil & Matthews, 2013). The trend places many patients at risk for other psychological issues, which affects their wellbeing. Corresponding to the extant challenge, it is important to describe a methodology for screening patients for depression in primary care, which is the aim of the proposed capstone project. Importantly, screening is the first step in dealing with depression. The project also proposes the approach to assessing the efficiency of the screening and managing depression.
Objectives of the Capstone Project
The capstone project will hope to achieve the following three objectives:
To present an evidence-based intervention for screening depression among patients presenting in the primary care setting,
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To propose a strategy that will handle depression in 90% of the cases identified by the screening process, and
To describe the methods of appraising the efficacy of the developed methods of screening for and managing depression among patients in the same setting.
Program Description
The aim of the proposed capstone project is threefold, as described previously. First, the project will present an evidence-based intervention for screening depression in primary care. The extant literature reports that screening is the most significant step in managing depression across populations (Abar et al., 2017). As the same study reports, while it is known that improper screening escalates patients’ depression conditions, only so much has been done to address this challenge. Consequently, a programing aiming to popularize screening in primary care is worthwhile. Second, the capstone project will seek to manage depression in ninety per cent of the identified cases. The connection between screening and management interventions is reported widely in academia. Precisely, proper screening is foundational to effective management (Peters, 2018). Following the screening, it is important to propose an intervention that will help manage depression in ninety per cent of the identified cases. Ninety per cent is chosen randomly because the reviewed studies report that even the most efficient depression management interventions can never be one hundred per cent efficient (Unützer & Park, 2012). Notably, efficiency is not a relative measure, which is why the project will propose a strategy for assessing the efficacy of the screening and intervention strategies in line with the objectives of the capstone project.
Program Protocols
The program will be conducted primarily by primary care nurses. The nurses will be grouped into two, designed to meet one of the objectives outlined. Three professionals will be charged with researching evidence-based strategies for screening for and the management of depression in patient care. The second group will be concerned with administering the interventions, bridging the gap between research and practice. The teams will then collaborate to appraise the efficacy of the proposed interventions (to test the relationship between research and practice). Importantly, the professionals involved have a speciality in research and patient care in the primary setting. The program will also involve patients. The role of the patients would be to provide the intervention group (they are the respondents of the research program). The extent of the program's activities implies a lengthy execution period. Therefore, the project is expected to last twenty-four weeks. The proposed duration would be sufficient to conduct satisfactory research in the two program areas, apply the findings in practice, and assess the efficiency of the interventions on a group of patients presenting in primary care.
References
Abar, B., Hong, S., Aaserude, E., Holub, A., & DeRienzo, V. (2017). Access to care and depression among emergency department patients. The Journal of emergency medicine , 53 (1), 30-37.
Akincigil, A., & Matthews, E. B. (2017). National rates and patterns of depression screening in primary care: results from 2012 and 2013. Psychiatric Services , 68 (7), 660-666.
Peters, M. A. (2018). Identifying Depression in Primary Care: An Evidence-Based Intervention. Retrieved https://sigma.nursingrepository.org/handle/10755/624194
Unützer, J., & Park, M. (2012). Strategies to improve the management of depression in primary care. Primary Care: Clinics in Office Practice , 39 (2), 415-431.
