A 2-item screen for depression in rehabilitation inpatients.
OBJECTIVE
To generate a brief screening measure to assist frontline rehabilitation health care workers to rapidly and validly screen patients for depressive symptoms.


METHODS
Case series.


METHODS
Inpatient rehabilitation unit.


METHODS
Five hundred patients (age, >/=60y) cognitively able to complete the outcome measure.


METHODS
Not applicable.


METHODS
The Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS).


RESULTS
Based on the strength of the correlation with the GDS total score, 5 items were selected for model development. A 2-item screen, consisting of items "downhearted and blue" and "worthless," correctly classified 78.4% of patients, with only 3.6% of patients having false-negative classifications. The 2-item screen did not differ significantly in its accuracy or predictive utility from the more inclusive models.


CONCLUSIONS
The identified 2-item screening instrument may be an effective tool for health care staffs to use in their efforts to identify symptoms of depression in older adults on a rehabilitation unit.
Cully
Jeffrey A
JA
Houston Center for Quality of Care and Utilization Studies, Veterans Affairs HSR&D Center of Excellence, Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Houston, TX, USA. jcully@bcm.tmc.edu
Graham
David P
DP
Kramer
Jennifer R
JR
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis*; D005260:Female; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D006304:Health Status; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012372:ROC Curve; D012047:Rehabilitation Centers