Adolescent Depression Treatment Pathways in Primary Care A Longitudinal Cohort Study Describing Naturalistic Flow of Treatment and Evaluating Effectiveness and Cost-effectiveness of Interpersonal Counseling Compared to Treatment as Usual

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are conducting a prospective observational cohort study in Finland to evaluate adolescent depression treatment pathways in primary care. The study focuses on adolescents aged 13 to 16 years attending grades 7 to 9 in selected schools, aiming to understand access to treatment and identify those who may benefit from adolescent interpersonal counseling (IPC-A). The study compares IPC-A, a brief behavioral intervention, to treatment as usual and no treatment, assessing effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. The study involves adolescents completing surveys over six months about depressive symptoms, treatment motivation, and benefits or harms from treatment every two weeks. Caretakers will also provide information on adolescent support needs and treatment outcomes through surveys at six-month intervals. When applicable, professionals providing support will report on their training and treatment content. Register data on social welfare and health care service use will be collected from one year before to up to ten years after the study to inform cost and service provision. Participants will be followed for 12 months to measure outcomes including the proportion referred to specialized psychiatric services and changes in depression symptom scores. Data on received support and treatment response will be gathered from adolescents, caretakers, professionals, and patient records. The study will monitor benefits and harms of treatment, aiming to improve detection, equal access, and inform prevention strategies for adolescent depression.

Adolescent Interpersonal Counseling in Primary Care