Tool
Kit Helps Providers Treat Patients with Depression
Many
service members and veterans experiencing symptoms of depression will receive
most or all of their care through their primary care physician. If you’re a
primary care provider and unfamiliar with the “Major Depressive Disorder
Toolkit,” it’s important you download it or request a hard copy today.
Developed
by Defense Centers of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain
Injury (DCoE), U.S. Army Medical Command and Department of Veterans Affairs
(VA), the tool kit provides clear, comprehensive descriptions of critical
decision points that help providers screen for major depressive disorder (MDD).
The tool kit guides diagnosis, management of symptoms and referral of patients
to mental health specialists.
This
all-encompassing, user-friendly guidance tool features evidence-based clinical
practice guidelines and recommendations from the Defense Department and VA. The
guidelines cover all aspects of care for MDD from screening and assessment to
follow-up and monitoring. The tool kit also includes a variety of reliable
tools, questions and simple reference material for providers, patients and
their families. It can be used in its entirety or in sections depending on
patient needs.
To
further assist providers using the tool kit, DCoE created the Major Depressive
Disorder Toolkit: Key Concepts for Primary Providers, which offers brief
background information on the clinical practice guidelines for MDD and an
overview of how the materials included in the tool kit can be used to
efficiently diagnose, assess and treat depression. A training manual for
instructors educating mental health professionals on MDD and a one-pager for
quick reference to treatments for MDD are also available.
Benefits
of using these tools include decreased practice variation, effective
decision-making and improved patient outcomes.
To
download a copy of the “Major Depressive Disorder Toolkit” or to order a hard
copy, visit dcoe.health.mil/MDDToolkit. For more clinical resources related to
psychological health or traumatic brain injury prevention and care, visit the
Health Professionals and Resources sections of the DCoE website.
