Assessment Tool for Screening Depression: Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)

Week 2: Measurement-Based Care
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Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ)
There are various valid psychometric instruments (assessment tools) for detecting depression symptoms. The patient health questionnaire (PHQ) is reliable and has been validated for detecting depression in adults, and its psychometric performance has mainly been evaluated in the US. PHQ-9 is one of the most popular assessment tools for the questionnaire, and interventions are used to lower PHQ-scores in adults diagnosed with depression. The PHQ instrument has various dimensions for detecting depression symptoms (Levis, Benedetti & Thombs, 2019). The PHQ tool is used for screening depression and major depressive disorders, and the respondents give their responses. The tool is used in both the general and medical populations.
There are different screening and monitoring scales for depressive symptoms. One of them is the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). It is a condensed version of the Primary Care Evaluation of Mental Disorders (PRIME-MD) developed to detect somatoform disorders, depression, anxiety, alcohol dependence, and eating disorders (Muramatsu et al., 2018). Depression is among the most common psychiatric disorders in the general population. The presence of depressive symptoms is linked to a decreased ability to handle stress and, in extreme circumstances, suicidal ideation behaviors. To properly diagnose a depressive disorder, it is essential to carry out clinical interviews by mental health practitioners. Using instruments, such as PHQ, to screen and follow on people with depression as the toll helps detect depressive symptoms and disorder. 
The self-report instruments have been used in diverse settings, including primary care. The PHQ tool is mainly used to monitor the severity of depression and changes in treatment and not screening. The 9-item version was chosen, both for its ease of application and for the evidence on its validity for detecting depression symptoms. The questions are scored 0-4 respecti...