Characterizing Therapy Experiences in Youth with Depression and Suicide via the Depression Treatment Experiences Questionnaire

There are multiple evidence-based therapy treatment options for youth with depression and/or suicidality, yet youth seeking treatment do not always receive these recommended treatments. Understanding the types of treatments received and patient understanding of their therapy experience is the first step to help track care in order to improve treatment received. To that end, TX-YDSRN assessed the validity of a new measure, the Depression Treatment Experiences Questionnaire (DTEQ), to better understand the youth experience with therapy. The measure showed promise as a useful tool for understanding therapy experiences, with two main domains identified by the measure. Lifestyle changes, such as changes to exercise and sleep, were found as a common addition to therapy. While almost half of participants reported receiving evidence-based therapy, the other half could not identify their therapy type, indicating a large gap in patient-provider communication.