7.1 Introduction
Learning Objectives
- Identify assessment cues of depressive disorders
- Identify nursing priorities for clients with depressive disorders
- Plan outcomes for clients with depressive disorders
- Describe safety/protective interventions for clients with depressive disorders
- Apply evidence-based practice when planning care and interventions for clients with depressive disorders
- Analyze treatments for clients with depressive disorders
- Apply the nursing process to clients with depressive disorders at risk for suicide
Depression is a common illness affecting an estimated 8% of adults in the United States annually.[1] Approximately 280 million people in the world have depression.[2]
Depressive disorders represent a group of conditions that share a core set of symptoms such as a persistent and pervasive low mood, loss of interest or pleasure in most activities, and a range of cognitive and physical symptoms that significantly impair daily functioning.[3] This chapter will discuss causes and types of depression, treatments for depression, and steps for applying the nursing process when caring for clients with depressive disorders.
- National Alliance on Mental Illness. (2017, August). Depression. https://nami.org/About-Mental-Illness/Mental-Health-Conditions/Depression ↵
- Depression by the World Health Organization is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO ↵
- World Health Organization. (2021, September 13). Depression. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/depression ↵
