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. 2021 Aug 20:12:581876.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.581876. eCollection 2021.

An Ecological Study of a Universal Employee Depression Awareness and Stigma Reduction Intervention: "Right Direction"

Benjamin Doty  1 , Adrienne Grzenda  1   2 , Seungyoung Hwang  1   3 , Sean Godar  4 , Darcy Gruttadaro  1 , Kimberly A Hauge  5 , Bruce Sherman  6 , Diana E Clarke  1   7
Affiliations

An Ecological Study of a Universal Employee Depression Awareness and Stigma Reduction Intervention: "Right Direction"

Benjamin Doty et al. Front Psychiatry. .

Abstract

Objective: Right Direction (RD) was a component of a universal employee wellness program implemented in 2014 at Kent State University (KSU) to increase employees' awareness of depression, reduce mental health stigma, and encourage help-seeking behaviors to promote mental health. We explored changes in mental health care utilization before and after implementation of RD. Methods: KSU Human Resources census and service use data were used to identify the study cohort and examine the study objectives. A pre-post design was used to explore changes in mental health utilization among KSU employees before and after RD. Three post-intervention periods were examined. A generalized linear mixed model approach was used for logistic regression analysis between each outcome of interest and intervention period, adjusted by age and sex. Logit differences were calculated for post-intervention periods compared to the pre-intervention period. Results: Compared to the pre-intervention period, the predicted proportion of employees seeking treatment for depression and anxiety increased in the first post-intervention period (OR = 2.14, 95% Confidence Interval [CI] = 1.37-3.34), then declined. Outpatient psychiatric treatment utilization increased significantly in the first two post-intervention periods (OR =1.89, 95% CI = 1.23-2.89; OR = 1.75, 95% CI = 1.11-2.76). No difference was noted in inpatient psychiatric treatment utilization across post-intervention periods. Unlike prescription for anxiolytic prescriptions, receipt of antidepressant prescriptions increased in the second (OR = 2.25, 95% CI = 1.56-3.27) and third (OR = 2.16, 95% CI = 1.46-3.20) post-intervention periods. Conclusions: Effects of RD may be realized over the long-term with follow-up enhancements such as workshops/informational sessions on mindfulness, stress management, resiliency training, and self-acceptance.

Keywords: anxiety; depression; ecological study; employee depression awareness; health care resource utilization; substance use disorders; wellness program.

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Conflict of interest statement

The Center for Workplace Mental Health, a program of the American Psychiatric Association Foundation, also receives funding support for its work from Sunovion, Janssen, Otsuka Pharmaceutical, and Myriad. SG has received funding support from Jansson Pharmaceuticals for a research study in conjunction with Tufts University. The funding had no impact on the current research. BS discloses advisory board compensation from, Amgen, Regeneron and Medtronic; is a consultant to the National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions and Employers Health Coalition, Inc.; has received research grants from Takeda/Lundbeck, Pfizer, Sanofi, and the National Pharmaceutical Council; and is a speaker/received honoraria from IBM Watson, Pfizer, Merck, and AbbVie. DC served on the advisory panel for the RAND Corporation Mental Health Landscape project, which was funded by Otsuka Pharmaceuticals. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Comparison of mental health utilization between post- and pre-intervention periods. Differences in the least square means (LS-means, predicted population margins in logit scale) were calculated for each outcome for each post-intervention period compared to the pre-intervention period.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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