Depression Screening in Middle Schools
Authors: Katie Stone, Haley Lawless, and Paige Flint
Faculty Supervisor: Nicole Masano, MSN, RN, CNM, CNE
Abstract:
Our project is on depression screening in middle school students. We partnered with the Boys and Girls Club at James Macon Middle School. We sent them the PHQ-9 survey, which screens for depression. The results from the survey were used to guide our project. We educated the students on healthy coping mechanisms and provided them with professional resources. With this information, the students and school faculty can recognize depression early and utilize the necessary resources for preventing major depressive episodes (MDEs). With the education provided, students were able to verbalize healthy coping mechanisms and resources available to them. They were also more aware of the negative impact that depression can have on their overall health. Our future implications of the project are to better educate the community as a whole about depression, the health risks involved, and resources available to anyone.
