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Updated: May 23, 2026

Association Between Sleep Quality and Cognitive Symptoms in Patients with Major Depressive Disorder

Association Between Sleep Quality and Cognitive Symptoms in Patients with Major Depressive Disorder

Published on: April 26, 2024

Depression screening as a quality indicator.

Daniel J Luchins¹

¹Chief of Mental Health Research, Jesse Brown VAMC and Professor of Clinical Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA.

Mental Health in Family Medicine

|April 6, 2012

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Routine depression screening, while acceptable as a practice guideline, is not supported as a quality measure due to technical, clinical, and policy limitations. Further research is needed to improve depression care quality indicators.

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Area of Science:

Healthcare Quality Improvement
Clinical Practice Guidelines
Mental Health Services Research

Background:

Practice guidelines for depression screening are evidence-based but their use as quality indicators lacks rigorous study.
Existing information technology has limitations in identifying eligible patients for screening and assessing screening effectiveness.

Purpose of the Study:

To review the evidence supporting the use of depression screening guidelines as quality indicators.
To evaluate the technical, clinical, and policy assumptions underlying this practice.

Main Methods:

A rational evaluation of controlled studies and other evidence sources.
Analysis of assumptions related to information technology, clinical outcomes, and health policy.

Main Results:

Technical limitations exist in current IT for accurate screening patient identification and monitoring.
Clinical evidence does not support improved outcomes from screening alone; diagnosed patients may be less ill or less responsive to treatment.
Depression screening is a low policy priority compared to other preventative measures and lacks cost-effectiveness.

Conclusions:

Depression screening guidelines are acceptable for practice but not validated as quality measures.
Quality improvement efforts may be better directed towards more robust interventions like collaborative care.
Further investigation into effective quality indicators for depression care is warranted.