Depression affects about one third of stroke patients and is associated with poor stroke outcomes. With funding from the Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research, UM researchers working under the direction of Dr. Lesli Skolarus conducted a pilot trial of the depression CarePartner program among acute stroke survivors. A total of 56 patients were enrolled from the stroke unit at the University of Michigan Health System. Of these, depressive symptoms were identified in 23%. Patients completed 74% of the weekly depressive symptom assessments and there was a trend indicating significant improvement in depression scores between baseline and the final assessment. Also, IVR monitoring proved to be useful in alerting the research team when patients were at critical points, such as suicidal ideation. All subjects and CarePartners rated the quality of the program as good or excellent and would recommend it to a friend.
For more information, contact Dr. Lesli Skolarus at lerusche@umich.edu
Categories:
Depression, Mobile Health, Stroke, U-M Health System
