Untreated clinical depression and other mental illnesses can result in serious consequences for individuals, families, and society. RAND research seeks to optimize the use of effective treatments for depression whether in a primary care setting or by psychiatric professionals, and to understand the impact of depressive disorders on various populations, including new mothers, teens, substance abusers, and those with other illnesses such as HIV/AIDS or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Research conducted by:
RAND Health;
RAND National Security Research Division;
RAND Gulf States Policy Institute;
Invisible Wounds of War Project
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The Allegheny County Maternal Depression and Child Health Care Initiative helped to promote healthy lifestyles and positive health outcomes, reduce preventable disease and environmental health risks, eliminate health disparities, and ensure access to quality care for young children, mothers, and families.
Research Briefs (8)
The Helping Families Raise Healthy Children initiative addressed depression among parents of children with early childhood developmental delays, aligning the early intervention and behavioral health systems with a focus on relationship-based care.
If all veterans suffering from major depression and posttraumatic stress disorder were to receive evidence-based treatments, policy simulations suggest that cost savings generated would be $138 million (15 percent) over two years.
School-based program helps children cope with violence
Examines the lifetime economic damages caused by childhood psychological problems.
Presents findings from the Teen Depression Awareness Project, which explored how depression affects teens, the factors that influence teens' readiness to seek treatment for depression, and the barriers that teens and parents face when seeking care.
Discusses the potential of community-based participatory research (CBPR) to reduce the burden of chronic health problems on poor and minority neighborhoods and describes three successful CBPR programs.
This research highlight updates the cumulative effects of a study of a collaborative care-based quality-improvement treatment program for depression after nine years.
In a series of recent studies, RAND examined the quality and cost-effectiveness of care for severely depressed patients treated under different payment systems by general medical clinicians and mental health care professionals.
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