A comparison of self-reported function assessed before and after depression treatment among depressed geriatric inpatients

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to determine whether self-perception of function among depressed, geriatric psychiatry inpatients improved as their depression resolved. Sixty-four older adults diagnosed with major depression were asked to evaluate their function upon admission to an inpatient psychiatry unit, and then again 3 months post-discharge. Subjects' caregivers also rated the patients' function at admission and 3 months after being discharged. Self-perceptions of function improved over time, while caregivers' perceptions remained stable, suggesting that patients' perceptions of function is in part influenced by their depression. Further, correlations between patient and caregiver perceptions of function were higher at 3 months post discharge (when patients were not depressed) than they were at admission. The implication is that self-perceptions of function are more accurate when not depressed.