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Abstract
The feasibility of providing practice nurse support as an adjunct to standard general practitioner treatment to patients with depressive disorders prescribed antidepressant medication has been demonstrated in clinical practice and in pilot work.
The main functions for practice nurses treating patients with depressive disorders include: assessment of depression; monitoring clinical progress; enhancing treatment compliance; promoting social change and education of the patient and carers.
Practice nurse support for people with depressive disorders should be based on clear clinical accountability in relation to GPs and other members of primary care and mental health care teams, suitable training programmes for practice nurses, and further research designed to establish the most cost-effective uses of such an innovation.