Depression Screening: What to Know

Depression screening is something your health care provider can use to help find out if you have signs or symptoms of depression.

Depression, or symptoms of depression, can:

Make it hard to do everyday things.
Raise the chance of having heart problems.
Make other health issues worse.
Be caused by physical conditions that could require treatment, like hypothyroidism, long-term pain, heart disease, and cancer.

What are the screening tests?

There are many types of depression screenings, but they all usually involve questions that:

Your provider asks you directly.
You answer yourself, like on paper or on a computer.

Who should be screened for depression?

Everyone over 12 years old should be screened for depression, especially if they:

Have a long-term condition or illness.
Are recovering from a serious illness or injury.
Are pregnant or just had a baby.
Have another mental health condition.
Think they have signs or symptoms of depression, like being very sad or down.

What do my results mean?

A positive result means that you have some signs or symptoms of depression, but doesn't always mean you have depression.

If you have a positive result, next steps can include:

Answering more questions about your symptoms and what is happening in your life.
Doing a physical check-up or taking blood or pee (urine) samples to find out if something other than depression might be causing your symptoms.
Referring you to a mental health specialist.

Because the results come from the answers you give to the screening questions, be honest so that you and your provider can work together to figure out the next best steps for you.

Get help right away if:

You feel like you may hurt yourself or others.
You have thoughts about taking your own life.
You have thoughts or feelings that worry you.

These symptoms may be an emergency. Take one of these steps right away:

Go to your nearest emergency room.
Call 911.
Contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (24/7, free and confidential):
- Call or text 988.
- Chat online at chat.988lifeline.org.
For Veterans and their loved ones:
- Call 988 and press 1.
- Text the Veterans Crisis Line at 838255.
- Chat online at veteranscrisisline.net.

This information is not intended to replace advice given to you by your health care provider. Make sure you discuss any questions you have with your health care provider.