Barriers to advance care planning in cancer, heart failure and dementia patients: a focus group study on general practitioners' views and experiences.

Background: The long-term and often lifelong relationship of general practitioners (GPs) with their patients is considered to make them the ideal initiators of advance care planning (ACP). However, in general the incidence of ACP discussions is low and ACP seems to occur more often for cancer patients than for those with dementia or heart failure.

Objective: To identify the barriers, from GPs' perspective, to initiating ACP and to gain insight into any differences in barriers between the trajectories of patients with cancer, heart failure and dementia.

Nature and impact of European anti-stigma depression programmes.

Stigma associated with depression is a major public health issue in the EU, with over 20 million people experiencing depression and its associated personal distress each year. While most programmes against stigma related to mental health problems are of a general nature, the knowledge about programmes tackling stigma against people with depression is limited. This study therefore aims to assess the nature and impact of depression-specific programmes in EU countries.

Community pharmacists' attitude toward depression: a pilot study.

Background: Pharmacists' expanding roles may be witness to greater involvement in mental illnesses, of which depression is the disorder with the highest prevalence. Little, however, is known on pharmacists' attitude toward depression, although it may affect pharmacists' service provision and lead to stigmatization of patients.

Objective: This study is intended as a pilot to explore community pharmacists' attitude toward depression, components in the attitude, and factors related to it.

Pharmacists' role in depression care: a survey of attitudes, current practices, and barriers.

Objective: Pharmacists may be well placed to take up a role in depression care, complementing the role of general practitioners. However, depression care is a relatively new role for pharmacists, and little is known of their attitudes, current practices, and barriers toward it.

Methods: A random sample of 200 community pharmacists in Belgium was surveyed about the care of patients with depression in comparison with patients with other, physical conditions.