Increasing depression screening rates in primary care

Depression affects 1 in 6 adults in the United States and is a leading cause of disability. Though effective treatments exist, most depressed individuals go unidentified and untreated each year. Mounting evidence suggests that screening for depression in primary care settings is an effective method to identify individuals with depression and to link them to treatment.

Health systems such as Penn Medicine are trying to implement universal depression screening, using a brief 2-item questionnaire called the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-2), for all eligible patients in primary care. However, only 40% of eligible patients are screened.

We launched a Your Big Idea challenge to crowdsource ideas from frontline clinicians and staff who have essential expertise about the barriers and opportunities in this area.  We asked, "What’s your big idea for increasing depression screening rates in the primary care setting?"

The submission period for this challenge has closed.  Stay tuned for information on winners and next steps.

 

Selected Members of the Challenge Committee

Courtney Benjamin Wolk, PhD

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Penn Center for Mental Health
Penn Center for Mental Health, University of Pennsylvania

Alison M. Buttenheim, PhD, MBA

Associate Professor of Nursing
Assistant Professor of Health Policy, Perelman School of Medicine
Senior Fellow, Leonard David Institute of Health Economics
University of Pennsylvania

Jeffrey R. Jaeger, M.D.

Professor of Clinical Medicine
Lead Physician, Penn Internal Medicine University City
University of Pennsylvania

Briana S. Last, MA

PhD Candidate
Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania

Cecilia Livesey, MD

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine​
Medical Director of Strategy and Integration, Department of Psychiatry​

Amanda Thompson, LCSW

Behavioral Health Provider
University of Pennsylvania