Citation

Felcenloben J, Gmitrowicz A. Psychiatr. Psychol. Klin. 2015; 15(3): 131-136.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2015, Medical Communications)

DOI

10.15557/PiPK.2015.0020

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Depressive disorders constitute a significant risk factor for suicidal behaviours among adolescents. Adolescent patients after suicidal attempts diagnosed with depression have been shown to reveal certain risk factors, such as experiencing difficulties at school and in relationships with peers. Suicide prevention programmes emphasise the need for the early detection of depressive disorders, and for the efficient implementation of adequate therapeutic strategies. The "Depressive disorders prevention programme for children and adolescents" presented in this article was developed in the Department of Health Policy at the Office of the Marshall of the Lódzkie voivodship. Since 2010, it has been annually conducted by entities selected in the course of a competitive tender. The main objectives of the Programme are to reduce the prevalence of full-symptom depression by identifying the predisposing factors in the examined children, and to reduce them with an intervention in the form of therapy workshops held for the affected children. The detailed objectives have been specified to include helping children with acquiring desired social skills, learning to pinpoint, name, and express the emotions they experience, acquiring techniques of coping with stress, improving their self-esteem as well as increasing the level of knowledge the children and their families have concerning depression, methods of preventing it, and its treatment. The latter may prove particularly valuable when depressive condition occurs or recurs. The efficacy of the programme has been evaluated for the period of 2010-2013. Each year, the Programme covered over 0.5% of the population of the Lódzkie voivodship aged 11-16. In the four years in question, the total of over 2% of the population in this age group was examined. Nearly every second student with a risk of developing depression was enrolled for the therapy workshops (i.e. 20% of teenagers examined in the first stage of the programme). Every fifth child was diagnosed as needing further diagnostics or therapy at a mental health outpatient centre. The comparison of the intensity level of the depressive symptoms measured with the Kraków Depression Inventory (Krakowski Inwentarz Objawowy) in the participants from the risk group (sten 7-10) prior to and following the therapy workshop cycle, revealed a reduction in the intensity in nearly every second participant. In the evaluation surveys they completed, 70% of the teenagers cited acquiring new knowledge as a result of the programme. © Medical Communications Sp. z o.o.

Language: pl

Keywords

Evaluation; Prevention; human; mental health; depression; social adaptation; health program; disease predisposition; coping behavior; Depressive disorders; workshop; Article; clinical effectiveness; depression inventory; Children and youth population; Workshop classes