Self-Rating Depression Scale in an Outpatient Clinic

RECENT development and use of the Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) has Proven to be a valuable tool in the assessment of depressive disorders in a group of hospitalized inpatients.¹There is a similar need in outpatient clinics to quantitate the amount of depressive symptomatology present or absent in the patients seen for treatment. Depressive symptoms may be present in any of the psychiatric disturbances seen in such a clinic, and a diagnosis of depressive disorder must still be made on a clinical basis. However, the use of such a scale is valuable in documenting and quantitating initial symptoms and complaints, and following changes in the patient's clinical course subsequent to treatment, using any of the modalities available. The purpose of a self-rating depression scale to be used in such an outpatient clinic setting would be similar to the ones stated previously with respect to its