Patients' and physicians' evaluation of the PHQ-D for depression screening

Background:. A high number of patients in primary care suffer from depressive disorders. General practitioners (GPs) have an important function in detecting depression at an early stage. There is evidence that the detection of depressive disorders can be optimised by implementing routine screening. Aim: To analyse the acceptability of the PHQ-D as screening tool for depressive disorders in primary care. Design/Setting. Feasibility study in general practices in South Baden (Germany) Methods: 1034 patients of 17 GPs in single practices were screened with the Patient Health Questionnaire and asked to evaluate the screening tool in terms of its acceptability for routine practice. The GPs assessed the complaints and diagnoses of each patient and also evaluated the screening tool in terms of its practicability for daily care. Results: GPs and patients evaluate the screening questionnaire differently, with patients rating the usefulness of the instrument more positively. 50.0% of the GPs rated it as an impediment, whereas 75.8% of the patients evaluated it as feasible for routine. No differences were found between patients with and without depressive symptoms. Conclusion: Patients accept the PHQ-D for assessing depressive symptoms in primary care. The GPs' belief that patients would not accept such questionnaires proved not to be in accordance with the patients' evaluation. More detailed analyses are needed to evaluate the efficiency of the PHQ-D for routine care.