Etiology, Assessment and Treatment of Depression

Description:

This training module identifies factors associated with depression and its prevalence and significance in the military population with a focus on deployment. It covers strategies and tools to assess for depression and empirically-validated treatments and adjunct techniques to address it in the military population. Case examples are used to exemplify key points about treatment for depression in Service Members.

Learning Objectives:

  1. To review the theoretical underpinnings and etiology of depression.

  2. To become more knowledgeable of factors contributing to depression among military personnel.

  3. To become more knowledgeable of the rates of depression and their significance in the military population.

  4. To identify psychological instruments to assess for depression.

  5. To review empirically-validated treatments for addressing depression and examples of treating military personnel and veterans with depression.

Outline:

  1. Etiology of depression

    1. One of the world’s top public health problems
    2. Clinical depression vs normal sadness
    3. Relationship between stress and depression
    4. Unique military stressors that may contribute to depression
  2. Theories of depression
    1. Cognitive
    2. Behavioral
    3. Neurochemical
    4. Genetics
    5. Environmental
    6. Interpersonal /social support
    7. Grief and its relationship with depression
  3. Risk factors for depression
    1. In general population
    2. In military population
  4. Rates of depression
    1. In general population
    2. In military population
  5. Depressive disorders and assessing for them
    1. Major depressive disorder
    2. Adjustment disorder with depressed mood
    3. Depression not otherwise specified
    4. Dysthmia
    5. Bipolar disorder
    6. Structured interviews for depression
    7. Self-report measures for depression
    8. Depression vs PTSD
  6. Assessment of depression in Primary Care (RESPECT MIL)
  7. Empirically-validated treatments and adjunct techniques for addressing depression
    1. Cognitive therapy
    2. Behavioral therapy
    3. Interpersonal therapy
    4. Medication
    5. Brief psychodynamic therapy
    6. Sleep hygiene
    7. Exercise
  8. Case study of military service member diagnosed with depression and treatment

Duration: 90-150 minutes (requires break every 90 minutes)

Notes:

Military Culture & Terminology and The Deployment Cycle and Its Impact on Service Members and Their Families are recommended as prerequisites.

*Continuing education credits are available for this course. Fees may apply.