GPs not giving depression sufferers enough choices
GPs are failing to let those suffering with depression know about all the treatment options available to them according to a new study, reports The Independent.
The study carried out by the Depression Alliance, entitled Daring To Choose, surveyed 513 people diagnosed with depression, and revealed that only a third had been told there were other treatment options besides anti-depressants.
There is now pressure on the Government to make sure GPs are informing patients about self-help groups and psychological treatments, as well as anti-depressants. 70% of those surveyed felt that had not been given enough information about the possible side-effects of taking anti-depressants.
The Government has already invested £173m to be used over the next three years to help improve psychological therapies.
The chief executive of Depression Alliance, Emer O’Neill, said: “Choice is not a reality for most people with depression and anxiety. While there are some excellent GPs and some well-informed patients, there are huge numbers of people who are sinking because they are brushed off, not taken seriously and walk away from the doctor empty-handed apart from a prescription.”
