Use of outcome measurements in clinical practice: How specific should one be?

Objective: Progress feedback is often measured with generic instruments that measure common symptoms and generic aspects of functioning. The current study aims to explore the relative usefulness of disorder-specific measures. We hypothesized that disorder-specific instruments reveal more improvement than generic instruments and that the addition of disorder-specific instruments results in better treatment outcomes.

The multidisciplinary depression guideline for children and adolescents: an implementation study.

It is important that depressed patients receive adequate and safe care as described in clinical guidelines. The aim of this study was to evaluate the implementation of the Dutch depression guideline for children and adolescents, and to identify factors that were associated with the uptake of the guideline recommendations. The study took place in specialised child and adolescent mental healthcare.

Stepped care for depression is easy to recommend, but harder to implement: results of an explorative study within primary care in the Netherlands.

Background: Depression is a common mental disorder with a high burden of disease which is mainly treated in primary care. It is unclear to what extent stepped care principles are applied in routine primary care. The first aim of this explorative study was to examine the gap between routine primary depression care and optimal care, as formulated in the depression guidelines.

Barriers to implementing the clinical guideline on borderline personality disorder in the Netherlands.

Objective: This study determined the gap between actual care and optimal care (recommended in the clinical guideline) for patients with borderline personality disorder in the Netherlands. Factors that affected guideline implementation were identified.

Methods: Ten specialized mental health organizations participated in this cross-sectional study.

Practical guidelines for economic evaluations alongside equivalence trials.

An effective treatment already exists for many diseases. In these cases the effectiveness of a new treatment may be established by showing that the new treatment is as effective as (i.e.

Cost-effectiveness of usual general practitioner care with or without antidepressant medication for patients with minor or mild-major depression.

Background: Minor depression is common in primary care and associated with increased health care costs. Many mildly depressed patients are prescribed antidepressants, although there is insufficient information on the cost-effectiveness of antidepressants for these patients. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether usual care without antidepressants is equivalent to (i.

Clinical effectiveness of usual care with or without antidepressant medication for primary care patients with minor or mild-major depression: a randomized equivalence trial.

Background: Minor and mild-major depression are highly prevalent in primary care. There is insufficient evidence for the effectiveness of antidepressants in the treatment of minor and mild-major depression. We compared the effectiveness of usual primary care treatment, with or without antidepressants, in minor and mild-major depression.

The Four-Dimensional Symptom Questionnaire (4DSQ): a validation study of a multidimensional self-report questionnaire to assess distress, depression, anxiety and somatization.

Background: The Four-Dimensional Symptom Questionnaire (4DSQ) is a self-report questionnaire that has been developed in primary care to distinguish non-specific general distress from depression, anxiety and somatization. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate its criterion and construct validity.

Methods: Data from 10 different primary care studies have been used.

Administering the MADRS by telephone or face-to-face: a validity study.

Background: The Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) is a frequently used observer-rated depression scale. In the present study, a telephonic rating was compared with a face-to-face rating in 66 primary care patients with minor or mild-major depression. The aim of the present study was to assess the validity of the administration by telephone.

The prognosis of minor depression in the general population: a systematic review.

Minor depression is common in the general population. There is no consensus about prognostic indicators that can identify people at high and low risk of chronicity. We systematically reviewed the available literature on the prognosis of minor depression in the general population and identified five studies.