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Zicht op depressie: de aandoening, preventie en zorg. Themarapportage van de Staat van Volksgezondheid en Zorg

Nuijen, J., Bon-Martens, M. van, Graaf, R. de, Have, M. ten, Poel, A. van der, Beurs, D. de, Nielen, M., Verhaak, P., Voorrips, L. Zicht op depressie: de aandoening, preventie en zorg. Themarapportage van de Staat van Volksgezondheid en Zorg Utrecht: Trimbos, 2018. 168 p.
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Each year, more than half a million adults between 18 and 64 years of age in the Netherlands face a depressive disorder (in short: depression). Depression has a significant impact: for the individual concerned and people close to him or her, and for society as a whole. The annual costs of absence from work and lower work productivity due to depression are estimated to be around 1.8 billion euros, and the costs of treating depression around 1.6 billion euros, as shown in an overview of available figures on depression. Although much is known about this disorder, important information is missing. In order to prevent depression, it is, for example, important to know more about factors that predict the development of depression. This also applies to factors that predict how long depression will last, or whether it is likely to return after a period of recovery.
This overview also identifies which preventive measures and care for depression are offered by parties in the ‘chain’: from preventive measures in municipalities to specialized mental health care. The available information on this from national registers is fragmented. For some chain partners, such as general practice and specialized mental health care, relatively much is known about the scope and nature of the depression prevention or care offered. However, little information is available for other domains, such as public health care and youth mental health care. This makes it difficult to gain a clear understanding of the quality of the chain of depression care in the Netherlands and how it can be improved. Among other things, information from the various registers needs to be linked and the missing data completed.
The report has been written on the instructions of the Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport. It is part of the State of Public Health and Health Services project. It is the result of cooperation between the Trimbos Institute of Mental Health and Addiction and other knowledge organisations, coordinated by the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM).