Evaluation of a depression screening and treatment program in primary care for patients with diabetes mellitus: Insights and future directions

Purpose: To evaluate a collaborative depression care program by assessing adherence to the program by internal medicine clinic (IMC) staff, and the program's effectiveness in treating depression in patients with diabetes mellitus. We also describe the rate of depression among patients with diabetes in the IMC. Data sources: Data for this program were obtained from a deidentified disease registry and included 1312 outpatient IMC visits in adult patients with diabetes between March 2011 and September 2011. Conclusions: Collaborative depression care results in high rates of screening for and identification of depression, high rates of antidepressant utilization, and improved depression scores; however, more focused interventions are needed to improve diabetes outcomes in patients with depression and diabetes. Implications for practice: The results indicate that the multidisciplinary IMC staff can work together with patients to identify and monitor depression within primary care. This study provides valuable information about models of depression care that can be implemented and evaluated in a clinical setting.