d dementia increase the risk of depression (winter 1996). As more factors enter the equation and the patient becomes more depressed, the likelihood of a suicide attempts increases. As previously mentioned, diagnosing depression in the elderly can be a challenging task due to all of the factors involved. When considering if an individual is depressed, one must examine the individuals background, cognition, medical history, etc. In order to diagnose depression, there are written and oral inventories of a persons mind that need to be performed. Symptoms of severe depression include: diminished interest in usual activities, significant weight loss or gain, insomnia or hypersomnia, psychomotor agitation or retardation, fatigue or loss of energy, feelings of worthlessness or guilt, diminished ability to concentrate, and recurrent thoughts of death or suicide. Depression does not always have to be severe. To be diagnosed with mild depression or dysphoria, the mood of the patient would first need to be depressed for two years. In addition to that, two of the following characteristics would need to be present: low self-esteem, poor concentration, difficulty making decisions, overeating or a poor appetite, low energy level, insomnia or hypersomnia, and feelings of hopelessness (August 1995).Diagnosing depression can be a difficult task due to the human element involved. A recent study by Jackson and Baldwin tested nurses skills of observation in detecting depression in hospital patients. They were asked to categorize patients as definitely not depressed, probably not depressed, probably depressed, and definitely depressed. The responses given by the nurses were checked against written inventories that had been filled out and analyzed. The results indicated the nurses were not accurate in their assessment until those labeled as probably not depressed were moved into the definitely depressed category. This illustrates that the patient m...
