title: Geriatric patients with depression. Improving outcomes using a multidisciplinary clinical path model.
abstract: Clinical pathways define multidisciplinary staff members' responsibilities, time lines, and patient outcomes. Although medical and surgical care settings frequently use them to improve quality, clinical, and fiscal outcomes for specific patient populations, staff members of psychiatric care settings have been hesitant to use clinical pathways because psychiatry emphasizes patient individuality. The authors describe the development and implementation of a psychiatric clinical pathway for geriatric patients with depression and identify common multidisciplinary interventions and a pattern of outcomes over the course of treatment for these patients. They also delineate quality and fiscal outcomes and future directions. Implementation of the pathway has been successful, and the development and implementation processes have applicability to other patient populations and care settings.
authors.affiliation: Norman and Ida Stone Institute of Psychiatry, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Chicago, IL, USA.
authors.forename: J K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Bultema
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mailliard
authors.forename: M K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Getzfrid
authors.forename: R D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Lerner
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Colone
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002641:Chicago; D019091:Critical Pathways; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000451:nursing / Q000628:therapy*; D005853:Geriatrics; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D008329:Managed Care Programs; D017146:Models, Organizational; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration*; D018802:Patient-Centered Care; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011567:Psychiatric Department, Hospital / Q000592:standards*; D011568:Psychiatric Nursing / Q000592:standards