Engage: A Treatment for Late-Life Depression and Comorbid Executive/Cognitive Dysfunction
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Summary
Although there are an increasing number of mental health treatment adaptations for older adults, there are still a number of factors to consider when making these adaptations. Cognitive decline is one such factor that places significant burden on older adults and can interfere with traditional mental health therapies. Engage is a behavioral treatment approach that has shown to be effective in treating late life depression. The investigators are testing the feasibility of Engage as a treatment method for late life depression in older adults with cognitive decline. The objective is to corroborate Engage as an alternative late life depression treatment method for a sub-population of older adults with cognitive decline. Cognitive decline poses a unique mental health treatment barrier that is often over looked in younger populations. With a relatively higher prevalence of cognitive decline in older adulthood, it is imperative that a feasible mental health treatment program that can be effective in the presence of cognitive decline.
Eligibility
- Age range
- 60+ years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- No
Inclusion Criteria: * Age 60 or older * Ability to read, write, and speak English * Located in Las Vegas or surrounding area * Ability to travel to UNLV campus by self or possible caregiver for regular study visits * Clinically significant symptoms of depression as evidenced by: 1) Scores \> 5 on the Geriatric Depression Scale-Short Form (GDS-SF) * Mild cognitive impairment as evidenced by: 1) Scores \> 18 and \< 25 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) Exclusion Criteria: * Active suicidal ideation * History of suicide attempt(s) * Current symptoms of: 1) Psychosis; 2) Active substan…
Interventions
- BehavioralEngage
Engage is a 9-week, behavioral-based, psychotherapy treatment protocol for late-life depression.
Location
- University of NevadaLas Vegas, Nevada