Stepped care mental health service in Australian primary care: codesign and feasibility study.

ConclusionsPreliminary data suggest that StepCare may be acceptable and feasible in Australian general practice, helping GPs identify and manage common mental health problems in their patients. The study provides implications for policy and practice, and points the way to future translational research into stepped mental health care.What is known about the topic?Depression and anxiety are common illnesses in primary care and GPs are ideally placed to implement stepped care approaches enabling early detection and accessible, effective care.What does this paper add?Developed in and for general practice, StepCare is the first fully integrated stepped approach to primary mental health care in Australia. As a first step in a translational research program evaluating the effectiveness of StepCare, this paper reports data regarding the feasibility and acceptability of the service.What are the implications for practitioners?Integrated into the workflow of general practice, StepCare is an online service that helps GPs detect new cases of depression and anxiety, provide evidence-based stepped care treatments and monitor patients' progress. PMID: 31662177 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Source: Australian Health Review - Category: Hospital Management Authors: Tags: Aust Health Rev Source Type: research