Journal article
Relationships between mood and employment over time among depressed VA primary care patients
General hospital psychiatry, Vol.34(5), pp.468-477
09/2012
Handle:
https://hdl.handle.net/2376/105691
PMID: 22771108
Abstract
Associations between depression, productivity and work loss have been reported, yet few studies have examined relationships between longitudinal depression status and employment continuity. We assessed these relationships among Veterans of conventional working ages.
We used longitudinal survey data from Veterans receiving primary care in 1 of 10 Veterans Health Administration primary care practices in five states. Our sample included 516 participants with nine-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) scores indicating probable major depression (PHQ-9≥10) at baseline and who completed either the 7-month follow-up survey or follow-up surveys at both 7 and 18 months postbaseline. We examined relationships between depression persistence and employment status using multinomial logistic regression models.
Although general employment rates remained stable (21%–23%), improved depression status was associated with an increased likelihood of becoming employed over 7 months among those who were both depressed and nonemployed at baseline. Improvements in depression status starting at 7 months and continuing through 18 months were associated with remaining employed over the 18-month period, relative to those who were depressed throughout the same time frame.
Given the pressing need to prevent socioeconomic deterioration in the increasing population of conventional working-aged Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom Veterans, further attention to the depression/employment relationship is urgently needed.
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Details
- Title
- Relationships between mood and employment over time among depressed VA primary care patients
- Creators
- Kara Zivin - Veterans Affairs Ann Arbor, National Serious Mental Illness Treatment Resource and Evaluation Center (SMITREC), HSR&DDuncan G Campbell - Department of Psychology, University of MontanaAndrew B Lanto - Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles, HSR&DEdmund F Chaney - Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington School of MedicineCory Bolkan - Department of Human Development, Washington State University VancouverLaura M Bonner - VA Puget Sound, HSR&D, WashingtonErin M Miller - Veterans Affairs Ann Arbor, National Serious Mental Illness Treatment Resource and Evaluation Center (SMITREC), HSR&DMarcia Valenstein - Veterans Affairs Ann Arbor, National Serious Mental Illness Treatment Resource and Evaluation Center (SMITREC), HSR&DThomas J Waltz - Little Rock Department of Veterans Affairs, HSR&D, ArkansasLisa V Rubenstein - Veterans Affairs Greater Los Angeles, HSR&D
- Publication Details
- General hospital psychiatry, Vol.34(5), pp.468-477
- Academic Unit
- Human Development, Department of
- Publisher
- Elsevier Inc
- Identifiers
- 99900546772501842
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article