Trends in antidepressant prescribing for new episodes of depression and implications for health system quality measures

• Published in: Medical care Vol. 50; no. 1; p. 86
• Main Authors: Pfeiffer, Paul N, Szymanski, Benjamin R, Valenstein, Marcia, McCarthy, John F, Zivin, Kara
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.01.2012
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Antidepressive Agents - administration & dosage; Antidepressive Agents - therapeutic use; Comorbidity; Depression - drug therapy; Drug Utilization; Female; Humans; Male; Medication Adherence - statistics & numerical data; Middle Aged; Practice Patterns, Physicians' - statistics & numerical data; Quality Indicators, Health Care - statistics & numerical data; Retrospective Studies; Socioeconomic Factors; United States; United States Department of Veterans Affairs - statistics & numerical data; United States

The nationally reported Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) antidepressant medication management measure assesses whether patients with new episodes of depression receive antidepressant coverage for 84 of the first 114 days of treatment. Although initial prescriptions for a 90-...