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According to a report commissioned by the Centre for Mental Health (Cardoso & MacHayle, 2024) the total cost to the economy of depression in 2022 was £300 billion. This comprises economic costs (£110bn), human costs (£130bn) and health and care costs (£60bn). Many treatments are, therefore, researched not just for their effectiveness, but also for their cost-effectiveness (you can read more in these Mental Elf Blogs).
Many first-line treatments such as talking and drug therapies are chosen for both their treatment effectiveness and their cost effectiveness. It is estimated however that around 50% of people using NHS talking therapies for depression will continue to have symptoms that remain above the clinical…