Should patients with Alzheimer's or dementia and be included in the Depression measure?
Patients with these conditions are not automatically excluded from the Depression measure. A patient is included in the denominator of the outcome measures when they have a diagnosis of depression or dysthymia accompanied by an elevated PHQ-9 score.
If the provider determines it is inappropriate to administer the PHQ-9 to a patient with one of these conditions, the patient won't have the opportunity to fall into the denominator.