Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2016 Jan;24(1):18-30.
doi: 10.1016/j.jagp.2015.07.003. Epub 2015 Jul 14.

Directions for Effectiveness Research to Improve Health Services for Late-Life Depression in the United States

Theresa J Hoeft  1 , Ladson Hinton  2 , Jessica Liu  2 , Jürgen Unützer  3
Affiliations
Review

Directions for Effectiveness Research to Improve Health Services for Late-Life Depression in the United States

Theresa J Hoeft et al. Am J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2016 Jan.

Abstract

Considerable progress has been made in the treatment of late-life depression over the past 20 years, yet considerable gaps in care remain. Gaps in care are particularly pronounced for older men, certain racial and ethnic minority groups, and those with comorbid medical or mental disorders. We reviewed the peer-reviewed literature and conducted interviews with experts in late-life depression to identify promising directions for effectiveness research to address these gaps in care. We searched the PubMed, PsychInfo, and CINHAL databases between January 1, 1998, through August 31, 2013, using terms related to late-life depression and any of the following: epidemiology, services organization, economics of care, underserved groups including health disparities, impact on caregivers, and interventions. The results of this selective review supplemented by more current recommendations from national experts highlight three priority research areas to improve health services for late-life depression: focusing on the unique needs of the patient through patient-centered care and culturally sensitive care, involving caregivers outside the traditional clinical care team, and involving alternate settings of care. We build on these results to offer five recommendations for future effectiveness research that hold considerable potential to advance intervention and health services development for late-life depression.

Keywords: Late-life depression; health services development; research directions.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST AND SOURCE OF FUNDING: The authors declare no conflicts of interest and acknowledge funding support from the Archstone Foundation (L. Hinton) and National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) T-32 program - MH073553 (T. Hoeft).

References

    1. Lyness JM, Caine ED, King DA, et al. Psychiatric disorders in older primary care patients. J Gen Intern Med. 1999;14:249–254. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Blazer DG. Depression in late life: review and commentary. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2003;58:249–265. - PubMed
    1. Mojtabai R, Olfson M. Major depression in community-dwelling middle-aged and older adults: prevalence and 2- and 4-year follow-up symptoms. Psychol Med. 2004;34:623–634. - PubMed
    1. Byers AL, Yaffe K, Covinsky KE, et al. High occurrence of mood and anxiety disorders among older adults: The National Comorbidity Survey Replication. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2010;67:489–496. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Unutzer J, Patrick DL, Diehr P, et al. Quality adjusted life years in older adults with depressive symptoms and chronic medical disorders. Int Psychogeriatr. 2000;12:15–33. - PubMed

Publication types