Depression in Older Adults: A Meta-synthesis

The title of the article, Depression in Older Adults, suggests that it is about the elderly. The writers, Jaqueline Corcoran et al., demonstrate to the readers that the number of adult depression sufferers is still large and steadily increasing. They claim that the majority of people remain depressed because of assumptions. They believe that depression is normal and that there is no cure. Most adults are depressed, yet few have sought therapy or medical attention. Articles like this one provide readers with valuable information about specific issues that people face.The article talks more about the qualitative studies that have been done to prove to people that depression can be linked to the old age.

The researchers conducted thirteen studies and came up with four main areas. Amongst the notable areas include experiences amongst individuals with his kind of disorder, the causes of depression, the recovery methods, and the treatment methods for depression. They have also used meta-synthesis as a methodology to systematically review the qualitative studies that have been done on this topic. Meta-synthesis is one of the various types of methodologies used to evaluate articles in the nursing field.

Moreover, the researchers used Inclusion criteria and search method to come up with detailed findings on depression matter. It is worth pointing out that this is the first method used in meta-synthesis methodology. It also involves conducting database search to acquire critical information on the research statement in question. The participants used in this research consisted of individuals ranging 60 years and above. This was the target group considered by the researchers. A graduate level research assistant assisted the researchers in conducting a database research (Corcoran et al., 2013). This is important because it must have helped the researchers in saving their time and focusing on other areas of the research study.

Data extractions: The researchers extracted the findings obtained in the primary study. This came after the inclusion criteria and the search method. The next plan involved synthesizing the ideas. These were the ideas extracted from different sources including; the findings from primary studies. Integrating concepts during the research process is vital. It is essential because it helps the researchers in coming up with more concrete information or opinions concerning the research study. Synthesizing ideas also helps the researchers to pick the most suitable insights obtained during the research study. The researchers made tables and lists to jot down important ideas or concepts collected during the investigation. Such an act also resulted in the creation of more efficient research results.

The article provides important facts regarding depression. The most important message that a reader gets from such a material is that ignoring depression is not good. Everyone who stays with an old person should take the opportunity to help them seek medical attention or psychologists. The causes, recovery barriers to treatment and experiences of depression covered in this text equip the readers with vital information regarding depression.

Surviving depressive ill-health: A Systematic qualitative review of older person’s narratives

This is the second article that I read. In this section, appropriate mechanisms or approaches that the older generations can take to survive depression are discussed. The article is a systematic qualitative review. In this article, the researchers stress that over 350 million individuals globally fail to agree that they suffer from depression sicknesses (Holm et al., 2014). A large percentage of this figure constitutes the older generation. From the article, it is evident that depression affects not only the older generation but also, the younger generations. As per this article, depression is termed to be mortality risk amongst the old. It is amongst the most risk factors which claim lives of the older adults.

The researchers used the methodology called system review method. Under this methodology, various ways were used in an attempt to come up with clear or sufficient results about depression illnesses amongst individuals. The first method used is called literature research. Thorough research study was conducted on the literature materials. The main reason for doing literature research was to gain immediate results or ideas about a research study. Literature materials are secondary sources of data. Amongst the search words used in performing the literature research include; depression, elderly, lived experiences, amongst others. These words may also be referred to as keywords. It is through this words, that critical idea were obtained from a literature document. Followed by the literature research were inclusion and exclusion criteria. This method helped the researchers in identifying information to include final data and the ones to ignore.

Finally, the review involved the thematic synthesis and Quality assessment methods in the order in which they are written. Being one of the critical techniques used by researchers, thematic synthesis helped them in identifying available themes as well as divergent ideas that must have existed. This is of great importance to the researchers because it helps them to come up with uniform ideas regarding the research. It also helps in preventing the possible research errors that would have been present. Qualitative assessment assisted in identifying the quality of the methodology. To sum it all, this article contains vital information regarding depression.

References

Corcoran, J., Brown, E., Davis, M., Pineda, M., Kadolph, J., & Bell, H. (August 01, 2013). Depression in Older Adults: A Meta-Synthesis. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 56, 6, 509-534.

Holm, A. L., & Severinsson, E. (January 01, 2014). Surviving depressive ill-health: a qualitative systematic review of older persons’ narratives. Nursing & Health Sciences, 16, 1, 131-40.