Depression Screening in the School Setting: Identification of the Depressed Adolescent

Abstract

Adolescent depression is a silent epidemic in this country. Untreated depression has detrimental effects on physical health, psychosocial well-being, and academic productivity. It is important for school nurses to be able to recognize depression and refer students promptly for treatment. This article and its associated learning module will provide school nurses with updated information on adolescent depression, discuss barriers in depression screening, use of the PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionaire-9 Item) as an evidence-based depression screening tool in the educational setting, and the important role of school nurses in depression screening. It is anticipated that by increasing awareness and knowledge about adolescent depression and providing training in the use of an evidence-based screening tool, school nurses will have greater confidence in identifying and referring students in need. (A free online depression screening education module developed by the lead author is available at https://sites.google.com/view/depressionscreeningtraining .).

Comparison of PHQ-9 and PHQ-2 as Screening Tools for Depression and School Related Stress in Inner City Adolescents

“…During our literature search we found articles that analyzed improvement of their screening practice for adolescent depression without mention of a specific tool, 22 need for screening in patients with chronic health conditions. 23 The importance of depression screening in adolescents going to school, 24 and studies that compared PHQ-2 versus PHQ-9. 25 However, we did not find any studies that tracked screening results over time, along with comparing the demographics and other factors mentioned in our study.…”

Mental Health Assessment of the Frequent Visitor-Part 2: Assessment and Interventions

“…Schools are beginning to consider adolescent mental health screenings considering that many students are not seen regularly for primary care. District and parental approval are required for school-wide screening of adolescents, though school nurses will find screening tools appropriate for individual student assessments (Law et al, 2017). Screening tools should be scored promptly to identify emergent situations, such as suicidal thoughts.…”

A Scoping Review and Content Analysis of Common Depressive Symptoms of Young People

“…School nurses are the key to the health of many students (National Association of School Nurses, 2020) and support the mission of the McKinney-Vento Act (U.S. Congress, 2015) by promoting the well-being of school-age children and youth experiencing homelessness or housing instability. They influence young people's mental health by detecting and referring those who may be experiencing depression (Law et al, 2017;Mattey, 2019) and other mental health issues. Early identification allows for more effective intervention.…”

“…They provide care to children and adolescents in schools and young adults at colleges or universities and may provide care in the school setting for vulnerable populations such as students experiencing homelessness (Gultekin et al, 2020) or refugee children and youth who are at risk of developing mental health problems (Johnson et al, 2017;Sullivan & Simonson, 2016). Because school nurses are the most accessible health care providers to young people and on the front lines to identify those who may have mental health issues, including depression, it is important to support school nurses to recognize depression in young people (Law et al, 2017;Mattey, 2019).…”