Brown Digital Repository | Item

Full Metadata

Overview

Year:: 2022
Contributor:: Abing, Ashley (Author); Hall, Chanita (Author); Bogus, Elizabeth (Author); Ramirez, Jamie (Author); Saal, Karen (Author)
Subject:: mental health; community health center; adolescents; Anxiety
DOI: https://doi.org/10.26300/mm4h-3x49

Files

Description

Abstract:: "BACKGROUND: Anxiety is characterized by feelings of excessive uneasiness, worry, and fear. Anxiety in adolescents can impair daily functioning, hamper academic achievement, and increase risk for suicide. Routine screening tools such as the General Anxiety Disorder 7 (GAD-7) screen can improve identification of at-risk patients and increase access to appropriate care. However, monthly reports at Providence Community Health Centers (PCHC) - Central demonstrate that GAD-7 screen rates for adolescent patients have been significantly lower than Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9) depression screen rates. OBJECTIVE: To investigate and understand why screening rates for anxiety are low among adolescent patients at PCHC - Central. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective analysis of structured data obtained from electronic health records (EHRs) from March 2021 to March 2022. In addition, we performed key-informant interviews of 5 medical assistants and 2 family medicine providers who screened adolescent patients ages 12-17 using the GAD-7 and PHQ-9 tools. RESULTS: Interviews revealed advantages of standardized screening, responsiveness of patients, language barriers, and limitations in confidentiality. EHR data demonstrated that 1 in 10 adolescents screened with PHQ-9 also have screens for GAD-7 while 1 in 3 adults screened with PHQ-9 also have screens for GAD-7. CONCLUSION/DISCUSSION: Low anxiety screens in adolescents may be due to: (1) recency of the GAD-7 anxiety screen to PCHC workflow, (2) less supported roll out system for GAD-7 screens during the COVID-19 pandemic, (3) attribution of patient symptoms to depression rather than anxiety, and (4) attribution of patient symptoms to physical rather than mental health symptoms. Next steps include (1) utilizing monthly care team meetings to understand specific workflow obstacles, (2) gathering data on the unique needs of each PCHC branch, (3) considering screening adolescents without their guardian present, (4) providing clinically validated translations of the GAD-7 screen (e.g., in K’iche and Khmer)."

Content

Access Conditions

Use and Reproduction: All rights reserved
Rights: In Copyright
Restrictions on Use: All Rights Reserved

Citation

Abing, Ashley, Hall, Chanita, Bogus, Elizabeth, et al., "Investigating the General Anxiety Disorder Screening (GAD-7) Rates for Adolescent Patients at Providence Community Health Centers - Central" (2022). Gateways to Medicine, Health Care, and Research. Brown Digital Repository. Brown University Library. https://doi.org/10.26300/mm4h-3x49

Relations

Collection:

Gateways to Medicine, Health Care, and Research

The Gateways Program at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University provides academically promising, motivated students new pathways to careers in the health sciences. This collection houses scholarly works produced by Master of Science in Medical Sciences (ScM) students …
...

Investigating the General Anxiety Disorder Screening (GAD-7) Rates for Adolescent Patients at Providence Community Health Centers - Central