Abstract
BackgroundDespite the availability of effective antidepressants, about half of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) display an inadequate response to their initial treatment. A large patient survey recently reported that 29.8% of MDD patients experiencing an inadequate treatment response felt frustrated about their medication and 19.2% were frustrated with their healthcare provider. This survey and chart audit evaluated healthcare professionals’ (HCP) views on the emotional impact of having an inadequate response to antidepressant medication.MethodsHCPs who frequently treat patients with MDD completed a survey and chart audit of their MDD patients currently experiencing an inadequate response to antidepressant treatment.Results287 HCPs completed 1336 chart audits. HCPs reported that 38% of their patients were trusting/accepting of their MDD medications and 41% of their patients trusted/felt confident with their healthcare provision. Conversely, HCPs reported that 11% of their patients were frustrated with their medication and 5% with their healthcare benefits. HCPs cited impact on daily life (53%) and treatment issues (lack of efficacy and side effects; 50%) as the main drivers for their patients’ feelings of frustration. When HCPs recognized patients’ feelings of frustration, the top concerns of the HCPs were worsening of symptoms (43%) and non-compliance (41%).ConclusionsThis survey and chart audit highlights the emotional burden associated with inadequate responses to MDD treatment in addition to persistent symptoms. Differences between the views of the HCPs and patients are highlighted and suggest that HCPs may underestimate the full impact that having to try numerous medications has on their patients.
Highlights
Despite the availability of effective antidepressants, about half of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) display an inadequate response to their initial treatment
We have recently reported the results of a large, international survey of 2096 patients with MDD which was designed to better understand the emotional impact of having an inadequate response to antidepressant
healthcare professionals’ (HCP) reported that a large percentage of their patients experiencing inadequate response to antidepressant treatment had positive feelings about their medication and healthcare, they identified a range of negative emotions including frustration and dissatisfaction, both with medications and overall healthcare
Summary
Despite the availability of effective antidepressants, about half of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) display an inadequate response to their initial treatment. A large patient survey recently reported that 29.8% of MDD patients experiencing an inadequate treatment response felt frustrated about their medication and 19.2% were frustrated with their healthcare provider This survey and chart audit evaluated healthcare professionals’ (HCP) views on the emotional impact of having an inadequate response to antidepressant medication. Despite the availability of many effective antidepressants, in about half of patients, major depressive disorder (MDD) responds inadequately to the initial treatment, leaving patients to cope with persistent symptoms while their medication plan is optimized [1,2,3]. There is often a disconnect between the patient and HCP perceptions of depression management [12] The aim of this HCP survey and chart audit was to evaluate HCP’s views on the emotional impact on the patient of having an inadequate response to antidepressant medication, and to compare these findings with the patient survey
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