SEMINAR: How to prevent depression in later life.

Depression is a common and disabling disorder that affects people of all ages. The causes of depression are not well understood, but consistent information about risk factors is available.

These include familial predisposition, certain lifestyle choices, clinical morbidities and exposure to various forms of stress. Stepped care programs have succeeded in reducing the prevalence of depression in people with depressive disorders, as well as the incidence of depression in people with subthreshold depressive symptoms. However, despite their established efficacy, they have not been adopted widely into clinical practice because of policy and financial constraints. Recent epidemiological evidence indicates that a more systematic approach to the management of risk factors might be a practical and effective strategy to reduce the prevalence of depression in the community, but trial data are not yet available.

This presentation will discuss the methods that underpin the development of risk models for depression and how these can be used in clinical practice to decrease the prevalence of depression in the community.

Bio,

OPA is the Professor and Winthrop Chair of Geriatric Psychiatry at the University of Western Australia, Director of Research of the Western Australian Centre for Health & Ageing, and Consultant geriatric psychiatrist at the Royal Perth Hospital. He completed his undergraduate and specialist medical training at the University of São Paulo, Brazil, and his research postgraduate training (PhD) at the Institute of Psychiatry, Maudsley Hospital, in London. He moved to Australia in 1998.

His recent research has focused on the identification and modification of risk factors associated with depression and cognitive decline in later life, supported mostly by grants from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia. He has over 400 publications and an h-index of 52.

PS* This seminar is free and open to the public & no RSVP required.

****All Welcome****