Exploring Antidepressant Adherence at a Student-Run Free Mental Health Clinic

Minority groups experience higher depression but lower treatment rates. Student-run free mental health (MH) clinics, such as the East Harlem Health Outreach Partnership (EHHOP) MH clinic, address this disparity. This study scrutinized EHHOP MH’s depression treatment by measuring adherence to antidepressants. Pharmacy data from seventy-nine patients were reviewed according to HEDIS criteria. Results compare EHHOP MH to New York State (NYS) Medicaid and NYS commercial insurance providers. In the acute treatment phase, EHHOP MH performed similarly to NYS Medicaid. In all other comparisons, EHHOP MH had lower adherence rates. Physician notes were reviewed to identify reasons for low adherence.