Stepped Telemental Health Care Intervention for Depression

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is common, with 12-month prevalence rates estimated to be between 6.6-10.3%. While many depressed patients state they would prefer psychological treatment to pharmacotherapy, substantial barriers to care exist, including cost, practical barriers such as time constraints and transportation, emotional barriers such as stigma, decreased motivation associated with depression itself, physical disability, and lack of availability of services. Telemental health has been proposed as a method of overcoming barriers to treatment. Research has focused primarily on two formats: the telephone and the Internet. Use of the telephone as a delivery medium produces reductions in depression equivalent to face-to-face psychological treatments, while also significantly reducing attrition. However, its success in outreach can also significantly increase costs for healthcare providing organizations. Internet interventions have the potential to produce moderate gains when supported by therapist or coach via brief telephone calls or e-mail but are also less expensive than standard therapy. Developing healthcare models that integrate treatment delivery media holds the promise of harnessing the advantages of each media, while minimizing the disadvantages. Stepped care models are a potentially useful framework for achieving such an integration. The stepped care model we will test initiates treatment with a validated, guided Internet cognitive behavioral therapy program. If patients fail to respond, they will be stepped up to a validated telephone-cognitive behavior therapy (T-CBT). The stepped care model will be compared to T-CBT in a randomized trial. Patients will be recruited from primary care and treated for up to 20 weeks, or until sustained remission is achieved.