Integrating Depression Care Into HIV Services for Older People With HIV Using a Stepped Care, Task-Sharing Approach.

Launched by ROYAL SOCIETY OF TROPICAL MEDICINE AND HYGIENE · Mar 18, 2025

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

Depression is a common but often overlooked comorbidity among older adults living with HIV (PLHIV), particularly in low-resource settings. It negatively impacts health outcomes, adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART), and overall quality of life. Despite its high prevalence, access to specialized mental health services remains limited due to workforce shortages and structural barriers within healthcare systems. A stepped-care task-sharing approach offers a potentially scalable solution by leveraging non-specialist healthcare workers to deliver evidence-based mental health interventions i...

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • Consenting individuals living with HIV
• • People living with HIV who are 50 years and above (PLHIV aged ≥50 years)
• • Those with a score of ≥10 on the 9-item patient-health questionnaire (PHQ-9).
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • • Older PLHIV will be assessed for the imminent risk of suicide and if there is an high risk, participant will be excluded.
• • Older PLHIV with severe cognitive impairment or diagnosed dementia that limits their ability to provide informed consent or complete study visits will be excluded.
• • Participants with comorbidities that can preclude the use of sertraline should be excluded.

Trial Officials