Audit and Monitoring
Patients on a practice list with depression will need to be identifiable through the clinical record keeping system (often referred to as registers). For audit purposes it would also be beneficial to classify the depression (i.e. mild, severe, atypical etc).
It is recommended that this identification record should be separate from any Severe Mental Illness (SMI) registers.
It is recommended that audit of enhanced services includes ensuring that:
- Primary care has protocols in place for the screening of high-risk groups and that these protocols are adhered to.
- Screening tools are used to aid diagnosis (ICD-10)
- Standard questionnaires are used to monitor progress (PHQ9, CORE)
- Patients are offered the appropriate number of monitoring and review appointments
- Medication is prescribed appropriately and monitored regularly:
- Not used for mild depression
- Information is given to the patient
- Prescribed in accordance with NICE guidelines
- Maintenance prescribing is monitored regularly
- Appropriate psychological therapies are available and offered to the patient
- Patient satisfaction is monitored (using a standard patient satisfaction questionnaire)