Depression screening increased after implementation of a general screening program in 2017, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open. Maria E. Garcia, MD, MPH, and colleagues examined depression screening rates among populations at risk for undertreatment of depression in a cohort study of EHR data from 52,944 adults at six primary care facilities. Depression screening rates were assessed after implementation of a general screening policy. An increase in depression screening was observed from 40.5% at rollout in 2017 to 88.8% in 2019. The likelihood of being screened decreased with increasing age in 2018 (adjusted ORs, 0.89 and 0.75 for ages 45- 54 and ≥75 vs 18-30, respectively). Patients with limited English proficiency, except for Spanish speaking patients, were less likely to be screened for depression than English-speaking White patients (adjusted ORs, 0.59 and 0.55 for Chinese language preference and other non-English preference, respectively). Depression screening had increased for all at-risk groups by 2019, and disparities had disappeared for most; lower odds of screening were still seen for men versus women (adjusted OR, 0.87).
