ABSTRACT

Post-deployment screening within the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) aims to capture those with mental health issues so that appropriate and timely treatment can be provided. However, the process is lengthy and places considerable burden on CAF members and clinicians. Evaluation of shorter measures of mental health is an important step toward reducing the length of the process while still capturing those in need of care. This study evaluated the 2-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-2) as a potential brief measure of depression to be included in screening. Operating characteristics of the PHQ-2 were assessed against the full scale using existing recommended cutoffs, as well as clinician impressions of depression being of major concern. Correlations of the PHQ-2 with other measures of health were also examined. The PHQ-2 demonstrated good sensitivity and specificity for detecting depression compared to the full scale and to clinician impressions, at cutoffs similar to those found in past research. As well, it exhibited high correlations with other measures of mental health. This study provides evidence for the validity of the PHQ-2 as a brief screening tool for depression in CAF members following deployment.

摘要

加拿大武装部队（CAF）进行的部署后检查旨在捕获有精神健康问题的人员，以便提供适当和及时的治疗。但是，该过程很漫长，给CAF成员和临床医生带来了相当大的负担。评价较短的心理健康措施是在缩短过程时间的同时，仍能吸引需要照料者的重要一步。这项研究评估了2项患者健康调查表（PH​​Q-2），作为筛查中可能包含的抑郁症的简短测量方法。PHQ-2的操作特性使用现有建议的临界值进行了全面评估，临床医生对抑郁的印象是主要关注的问题。还检查了PHQ-2与其他健康指标的相关性。与以前的研究相似，与全面和临床印象相比，PHQ-2在检测抑郁方面显示出良好的敏感性和特异性。同样，它与其他心理健康指标也显示出高度相关性。这项研究为部署后的PHF-2作为CAF成员抑郁症的简短筛查工具的有效性提供了证据。