Perceived barriers to mental health care and goal setting among depressed, community-dwelling older adults

Mark I Weinberger1, Camila Mateo2, Jo Anne Sirey11Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medical College, White Plains, NY, USA; 2College of Public Health and Health Professions, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USAObjective: Older adults are particularly vulnerable to the deleterious effects of depression and tend to underutilize mental health services. The current study aims to characterize the perceived barriers to care and goal setting in a sample of depressed, community-dwelling older adults. Methods: We report on the association among perceived barriers to care, goal setting and accepting a mental health referral using a subset of data from a larger study. The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) was used to assess depressive symptoms. Results: Forty-seven participants completed the study (Mean age = 82, SD = 7.8, 85% female). Accessing and paying for mental health treatment were the barriers most frequently cited by participants. Clinical improvement and improved socialization were most cited goals. In bivariate associations, participants who set goals (χ2 = 5.41, p = 0.02) and reported a logistic barrier (χ2 = 5.30, p = 0.02) were more likely to accept a mental health referral.Conclusion: Perceived barriers to care and goal setting appear to be central to accepting a mental health referral among community dwelling older, depressed adults. Developing interventions that can be used to increase mental health service utilization of older adults is necessary. Keywords: depression, older adults, community, perceived barriers to car

Cognitive and behavioral predictors of light therapy use

Objective: Although light therapy is effective in the treatment of seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and other mood disorders, only 53-79% of individuals with SAD meet remission criteria after light therapy. Perhaps more importantly, only 12-41% of individuals with SAD continue to use the treatment even after a previous winter of successful treatment. Method: Participants completed surveys regarding (1) social, cognitive, and behavioral variables used to evaluate treatment adherence for other health-related issues, expectations and credibility of light therapy, (2) a depression symptoms scale, and (3) self-reported light therapy use. Results: Individuals age 18 or older responded (n = 40), all reporting having been diagnosed with a mood disorder for which light therapy is indicated. Social support and self-efficacy scores were predictive of light therapy use (p's<.05). Conclusion: The findings suggest that testing social support and self-efficacy in a diagnosed patient population may identify factors related to the decision to use light therapy. Treatments that impact social support and self-efficacy may improve treatment response to light therapy in SAD. © 2012 Roecklein et al

The relationship of multiple aspects of stigma and personal contact with someone hospitalized for mental illness, in a nationally representative sample

The stigma of mental illness has been shown to be affected by personal contact with mental illness and by a belief in the genetic heritability of mental illness. We use data from a nationally representative survey to test whether the relationship of stigma with contact remains after taking into account the effects of genetic beliefs and other background characteristics. Contact was defined as a history of psychiatric hospitalization among respondents themselves, their family members, or their friends. Respondents answered questions about a vignette character with a mental illness. We found that respondents with contact felt less anger and blame toward the character, thought that the character had a more serious problem, and would want less social distance from the character, including both casual and intimate aspects of social distance. Respondents with contact were not significantly different from the general population in the degree to which they expressed sympathy, thought the problem would last a lifetime, or wanted to restrict reproduction. Thus, contact is associated with having a less ostracizing, critical attitude toward a stranger with mental illness. The results underscore the importance of this experienced group as a resource in fighting stigma in society. Since many people who have had a psychiatric hospitalization have not told their friends or family members about it, this lower-stigma group could be enlarged

Antidepressant Prescribing in Primary Care to Older Adults Without Major Depression

ObjectiveThe study compared distress levels among two groups of older adults who had been newly prescribed an antidepressant by their primary care physician, those with major depressive disorder (MDD) and those without MDD.MethodsThis analysis used a convenience sample of participants (N=231) who had been newly prescribed an antidepressant in a randomized controlled trial of a program to improve antidepressant adherence and depression outcomes among older adults (≥55). After determining the proportion of participants with and without MDD (using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV), the authors compared groups on demographic, clinical, and psychosocial characteristics, including the 12-Item Short-Form Health Survey physical and mental component summary scores (PCS and MCS). Logistic regression was used to test the association of these characteristics with antidepressant use in the absence of MDD.ResultsMost (57%) participants did not have MDD. This group was older (69.4 versus 64.7, p&lt;.001), had a larger proportion of white participants (82% versus 56%, p&lt;.001), and reported better physical (PCS, 43.4 versus 39.9, p=.03) and emotional (MCS, 40.2 versus 30.5, p&lt;.001) well-being compared with the group with MDD. In the final regression model, white race (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=3.11, p=.03) and better emotional well-being (AOR=1.16, p&lt;.001) were associated with antidepressant use in the absence of MDD.ConclusionsOlder adults prescribed antidepressants in the absence of MDD did not report similar distress levels compared with their counterparts with MDD. Given the continued emphasis on screening for depression in primary care, it is important to consider the potential for overtreatment