Although there is evidence that telephone care management is a relatively inexpensive means of reducing depression for more affluent populations, telephone care management models have not been tested with low-income populations. The results in this paper suggest the following:
- Care managers can successfully engage low-income, depressed individuals to discuss their condition by telephone.
- Telephonic care management can encourage low-income individuals to seek treatment from mental health professionals, at least in the short term.
- A more intensive intervention, including use of antidepressants for depression symptoms, may be needed to help individuals maintain treatment.
Acknowledgments
We are grateful to Lauren Cates, Christopher Leake, Johanna Walter, Julianna Alson, and Rachel Pardoe at MDRC for being part of the Hard-to- Employ Demonstration and Evaluation’s Rhode Island team. We would also like to thank the United Behavioral Health/OptumHealth care management team Thalia Genes, Susan Epstein, Stephanie Ridgeway, Kathleen Sweet, and Maria Sekac, who worked closely with program participants and providers.
Author Affiliations: From Health and Barriers to Employment (SEK, CM, DMB), MDRC, Oakland, CA; Department of Sociology and Health Equity Institute (AJL), San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA; Research Division, OptumHealth Behavioral Solutions (FA), San Francisco, CA; Group Health Research Institute (EJL, GES), Seattle, WA.
Funding Source: This study was funded by Administration for Children and Families and the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation in the US Department of Health and Human Services, with additional funding from the US Department of Labor. The funders reviewed and approved the manuscript for submission.
Author Disclosures: Dr Azocar reports employment and stock ownership with OptumHealth Behavioral Solutions, where the intervention took place. The company also provided access and clinical staff, as well as claims data for analysis. The other authors (SEK, AJL, CM, EJL, DMB, GES) report no relationship or financial interest with any entity that would pose a conflict of interest with the subject matter of this article.
Authorship Information: Concept and design (SEK, AJL, CM, FA, EJL, DMB, GES); acquisition of data (CM, FA, EJL, GES); analysis and interpretation of data (SEK, AJL, CM, FA, EJL, GES); drafting of the manuscript (SEK, AJL, CM, FA); critical revision of the manuscript for important intellectual content (SEK, AJL, CM, FA, EJL, DMB, GES); statistical analysis (SEK, CM); provision of study materials or patients (FA); obtaining funding (DMB); administrative, technical, or logistic support (FA, GES); and supervision (SEK, FA).
Address correspondence to: Sue E. Kim, PhD, MPH, MDRC, 475 14th St, Ste 750, Oakland, CA 94612. E-mail: sue.kim@mdrc.org.
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