| Description |
Primary care providers encounter patients with diabetes and depression on a regular basis and are largely responsible for screening, identifying, and monitoring patients with both conditions. Although diabetes is recognized and treated more often by primary care providers, the mental health assessment of these patients tends to be neglected (Strauss, et al., 2016; Adler & Harlan, 2013; Jensen, Dumas, & Edlund, 2016). This leads to depression being undetected and untreated in the diabetic population. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) recommends routine depression screening in patients with diabetes, however this is not occurring at optimal rates (LaVance, Fairchild, & Risado, 2015). Multiple barriers to screening exist, therefore providers fail to identify and screen patients effectively for depression. Barriers can be eased by incorporating evidence based screening tools in the primary care setting to improve patient outcomes and ensure depression is identified early in the disease process for accurate diagnosis and effective treatment. This is a vital component of diabetes care in the primary care setting (Barnacle, Strand, Werremeyer, Maack, & Petry, 2016). |
