Journal
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF GERIATRIC PSYCHIATRY
Volume 25, Issue 10, Pages 1109-1119Publisher
ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC
DOI: 10.1016/j.jagp.2017.04.015
Keywords
Depression; internet interventions; peer support; online; technology
Categories
Funding
- National Institutes of Health [P20 MH090318, R01MH095753]
- U.S. National Institutes of Health as part of the Clinical Translational Science Award (CTSA) program
- Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Science (NUCATS) Institute
- National Institutes of Health National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences [UL1TR001422]
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Objective: This pilot study evaluated the feasibility and efficacy of two methods of delivering a cognitive behaviorally informed Internet intervention for depression for adults 65 years and older. Methods: Forty-seven participants were enrolled and assigned to receive one of two versions of the Internet intervention, either delivered individually (III) or with peer support (II+PS), or to a wait list control group (WLC). Primary outcomes included change in depressive symptoms from baseline to post-intervention (week 8), site use, self-reported usability, and coach time. Secondary outcomes included measures of social support and isolation and anxiety. Results: Follow-up data were provided by 85.1% (40 of 47) of enrolled participants. There were significant differences in depression change across groups (F-(2,F-37) = 3.81, p = 0.03). Greater reductions in depressive symptoms were found for the III (p = 0.02) and II+PS (p = 0.03) compared with WLC, and significantly less coach time was required in the II+PS (p = 0.003). Conclusions: These results highlight the potential of cognitive-behaviorally informed Internet interventions for older adults with depression, and indicate that peer-supported programs are both acceptable and equivalent to individually delivered Internet interventions. Including peer support may be a viable and potentially more cost-effective option for disseminating online treatments for depression for older adults.
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