Depression Treatment Plan

Depression Treatment Plan
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Depression Treatment Plan
The World Health Organization (WHO) identifies depression as a global disease that interferes with individuals’ quality of life by impairing their proper functioning. As a result, experts have flagged this condition as a significant contributor to the increasing worldwide disease burden because its presence also aggravates or triggers the onset of other chronic conditions. According to Gautam et al. (2017), depression was projected to become the second leading disability cause globally by 2020. In this context, Bogucki et al. (2020) agree that its health impacts are far-reaching because of the associated morbidity and mortality rates. Gautam et al. (2017) add that its situation becomes even more complicated because of the associated lengthy hospitalization, rising healthcare costs, and poor treatment compliance. Considering that it also interferes with role transition and functioning, depression emerges as a life-threatening condition requiring a case-based prescription and non-prescription medications or therapies. Thus, these features illustrate the importance of proper diagnosis to commence age-appropriate treatment and monitoring for desired quality outcomes.
Conclusive diagnosis of depression often leads to the prescription of pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy treatment options. Bogucki et al. (2020) indicate that the former comprises various drugs categorized as antidepressants. Gautam et al. (2017) state that healthcare providers have a wide range of medications in this category to prescribe to their patients depending on their characteristics and disease severity. Evidence indicates that antidepressants belong to different classes, including tetracyclic like Maprotiline, tricyclic secondary amines like Protriptyline and Desipramine, unicyclic like Bupropion, and tricyclic tertiary amines like Doxepin and Amitriptyline, among many others (Gautam et al., 2017). Researchers have found that these medications often present comparable efficacy in depression management. Although patient-based and drug-specific aspects dictate the practitioner’s prescription, doctors recognize some drugs as first-line due to their safety profile and side effects. Such medications require the patients to start with a lower dose while carefully being monitored for side effects and responses. Thus, the choice of the drug and the dose depends on diverse factors.
Other than the pharmacotherapy options, healthcare providers may also prescribe incorporating psychotherapeutic interventions to complement the former and improve the overall patient outcomes. Bogucki et al. (2020) support this observation by indicating that the various approaches to this option, including problem-solving, cognitive-behavioral, and interpersonal therapy, drastically increase the recovery rate of a patient in clinical settings. In the same context, Bogucki et al. (2020) state that these treatment techniques become appropriate when healthcare practitioners identify notable intrapsychic conflict, psychological stressors, and interpersonal challenges during their assessment and diagnosis pha...