C54038: Depression: A guide for eye care practitioners – part 1

Depression is a common and debilitating mental health condition and a leading cause of disability in the UK. Worryingly for optometry, research shows depressive symptoms are highly prevalent in people experiencing sight loss and will likely affect rehabilitation outcomes.¹ This article, the first in a two-part series, will help you to understand the condition and its link to sight loss. In the second article, we will examine how to identify depression in clinical practice, and what you can do to improve patient care.

A common concern

Let me start with a recollection. I remember Ted clearly. I was a psychological wellbeing practitioner in the NHS when I first met him: he had come to see me for an appointment on the advice of his GP. Ted was in his seventies, married and recently retired. He had been an active man during his working life and had enjoyed lots of hobbies. However, he tentatively described to me that since his retirement he often felt tired and demotivated. He no longer had interest in his hobbies, photography and DIY, and was finding it hard to help out around the house. We chatted in detail about the changes in himself, and when I asked Ted why he was no longer enjoying going out and taking photographs, he replied ‘What’s the point? The photos will only end up in the skip when I am gone.’