title: How to try this: the Geriatric Depression Scale: Short Form.
abstract: Depression is underrecognized in older adults, especially those with chronic conditions such as heart disease and arthritis. Left untreated, depression may progress and have dramatic effects on overall health. The Geriatric Depression Scale: Short Form is a 15-question screening tool for depression in older adults that takes five to seven minutes to complete and can be filled out by the patient or administered by a provider with minimal training in its use. The questions focus on mood; the score can help clinicians decide whether further assessment is needed. (This screening tool is included in a series, Try This: Best Practices in Nursing Care to Older Adults, from the Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing at New York University's College of Nursing.) For a free online video demonstrating the use of this tool, go to http://links.lww.com/A101.
authors: Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing, New York University (NYU) College of Nursing, New York City, NY, USA. sherry@familygreenberg.com
authors: Sherry A
authors: SA
authors: Greenberg
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D015897:Comorbidity; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D015577:Geriatric Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods*; D009730:Nursing Assessment / Q000379:methods; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D015995:Prevalence; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012307:Risk Factors; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires