Elderly care recipients’ perceptions of treatment helpfulness for depression and the relationship with help-seeking

Figures & data

Table 1 Demographic characteristics of sample and depression status

	High care, N=24	Low care, N=26	Self-care, N=43	Community care, N=25	Total, N=118
Female, % (n)	62.5 (15)	65.4 (17)	76.7 (33)	80.0 (20)	72.0 (85)
Age, years, mean (standard deviation)	83.9 (6.3)	76.8 (7.7)	81.1 (5.8)	83.7 (7.0)	81.3 (7.0)
Years of schooling, mean (standard deviation)	9.8 (1.9)	10.7 (1.7)	10.8 (2.2)	9.4 (2.9)	10.3 (2.3)
Lifetime experience of depression, % (n)	70.8 (17)	65.4 (17)	31.0 (13)	40.0 (10)	48.7 (57)
Geriatric Depression Scale score, mean (standard deviation)	5.5 (2.7)	3.8 (3.7)	1.4 (1.4)	4.8 (3.6)	3.7 (3.3)
Currently meeting diagnostic criteria for depression (Geriatric Depression Scale ≥5), % (n)	58.3 (14)	30.8 (8)	3.3 (1)	44.0 (11)	32.4 (34)
Currently receiving treatment for depression, % (n)	25.0 (4)	35.5 (6)	16.7 (2)	22.2 (2)	25.9 (14)

Table 2 Help-seeking sources

Source	Percentage (n)
Professional sources, N=54
Doctor	46.3 (25)
Psychiatrist	24.1 (13)
Counselor	9.4 (5)
Other (1 pharmacist, 2 psychologists, 1 social worker, and 1 neurosurgeon)	9.4 (5)
None of the above	35.2 (19)
Informal sources, N=53
Family	45.3 (24)
Friends	37.7 (20)
Clergy	13.2 (7)
Relaxation instructor	9.4 (5)
Naturopath or herbalist	7.6 (4)
Personal trainer	5.7 (3)
Other (2 staff members, and 1 not specified)	5.7 (3)
None of the above	30.2 (16)

Note: Percentages do not total to 100, as more than one source of help could be nominated.

Table 3 Perceptions of interventions/treatments for depression as helpful or harmful

	n	Helpful, % (n)	Harmful, % (n)
Sleeping tablets/sedatives	114	40.4 (46)	23.7 (27)
Brief counseling	115	73.9 (85)	0.9 (1)
Antidepressants	113	60.2 (68)	10.6 (12)
Reading about people with similar problems and how they dealt with them	110	54.5 (60)	4.5 (5)
Natural remedies (eg, vitamins)	112	41.1 (46)	1.8 (2)
Becoming more physically active	112	78.6 (88)	0
Having an occasional alcoholic drink to relax, get to sleep, or help cope	112	36.6 (41)	34.8 (39)
Reading self-help books	113	55.8 (63)	6.2 (7)
Long-term counseling	112	62.5 (70)	4.5 (5)

Note: Only the response categories “helpful” and “harmful” are shown in the table, so percentages do not add up to 100.

Table 4 Univariate predictors of seeking professional or informal help

	n	Professional help, odds ratio (95% confidence interval)	Informal help, odds ratio (95% confidence interval)
Age	53
First tertile		0.16 (0.04–0.72)*	0.13 (0.03–0.62)*
Second tertile		0.23 (0.05–1.13)	0.12 (0.02–0.66)*
Third tertile		1.00	1.00
Sex	53	0.90 (0.28–3.05)	0.29 (0.08–1.00)*
Years of schooling	47	0.92 (0.67–1.26)	1.02 (0.72–1.43)
High care versus other types of care	53	2.93 (0.88–9.70)	1.36 (0.40–4.69)
Low care versus other types of care	53	0.97 (0.29–3.22)	1.36 (0.40–4.69)
Self-care versus other types of care	53	1.92 (0.45–8.18)	0.69 (0.16–3.00)
Community care versus other types of care	53	0.26 (1.22–5.59)	0.41 (0.04–3.86)
Clinical Dementia Rating Scale score	53	2.63 (1.16–5.97)*	1.03 (0.49–2.17)
Geriatric Depression Scale 15 score	48	0.92 (0.67–1.26)	0.95 (0.78–1.15)

Note:

* P≤0.05.