American Psychiatric Association Practice Guidelines for the Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders 2004 TREATING MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER: A Quick Reference Guide > TREATING MAJOR DEPRESSIVE DISORDER: A Quick Reference Guide Sections: A. Psychiatric Management, 1. Perform a diagnostic evaluation., 2. Evaluate the safety of the patient and others., 3. Evaluate and address functional impairments., 4. Determine the treatment setting., 5. Establish and maintain a therapeutic alliance., 6. Monitor psychiatric status and safety., 7. Provide education to the patient and, when appropriate, to his or her family., 8. Enhance medication adherence., 9. Address early signs of relapse., B. Acute Phase Treatment, 1. Choice of Initial Treatment Modality, a. Pharmacotherapy, b. Psychotherapy Alone, c. Combined Pharmacotherapy and Psychotherapy, d. Electroconvulsive Therapy, 2. Choice of Antidepressant, a. Principles of Choosing an Initial Antidepressant , b. Implementation of Antidepressant Therapy, c. Initial Failure to Respond, d. Continued Failure to Respond, 3. Choice of Psychotherapy, a. Principles of Choosing a Psychotherapy, b. Psychotherapy Implementation, 4. Choice of Medication Plus Psychotherapy, 5. Assessing Adequacy of Treatment Response, C. Continuation Phase, D. Maintenance Phase, E. Discontinuation of Active Treatment. Topics Discussed: antidepressive agents; electroconvulsive therapy; major depressive disorder; psychotherapy; suicide risk assessment. Excerpt: "Based on Practice Guideline for the Treatment of Patients With Major Depressive Disorder, Second Edition, originally published in April 2000. A guideline watch, summarizing significant developments in the scientific literature since publication of this guideline, may be available.Throughout the formulation of a treatment plan and all subsequent phases of treatment, the following principles of psychiatric management should be kept in mind:..." DOI: 10.1176/appi.books.9780890423370.109668 The content above is only an excerpt. For full access subscribe now or log into your account below. You can also purchase 24- or 48-hour access; learn more Username: Password:   FORGOT your subscriber username and/or password? Get a reminder via email: The email I registered with is:  Not a subscriber? Subscribe Today PsychiatryOnline is a powerful website that features DSM-IV-TR® and The American Journal of Psychiatry as the cornerstones of an unsurpassed collection of psychiatric references, including books, journals, and self-assessment tools. PsychiatryOnline’s innovative platform makes these resources easy and convenient to use, offering Precise and powerful searching across books and journals. Quick pathways to related material. Mobile access from any computer with a Web connection. Ability to download any book section to PDA. Links from bibliographic references to the full text of journal articles. References to material not located in the PsychiatryOnline collection lead you to PubMed. Learn more about PsychiatryOnline Need more help? PsychiatryOnline Customer Service may be reached by emailing PsychiatryOnline@psych.org or by calling 800-368-5777 (in the U.S.) or 703-907-7322 (outside the U.S.).