Our Program

Evidence-Based Treatment for Depression in the Elderly and Adults with Epilepsy

The PEARLS Program is a highly effective evidence based treatment for depression, designed to reduce depressive symptoms and improve quality of life in older adults and in all-age adults with epilepsy. During six to eight in-home sessions that take place in the client’s home and focus on brief behavioral techniques, PEARLS Program counselors empower individuals to take to action and make lasting changes so that they can lead more active and rewarding lives.

The PEARLS Program:

• focuses on teaching each client the skills necessary to move to action and make lasting life changes
• is delivered in the client’s home
• is designed to be delivered in the community, primarily through existing service-provision programs
• takes a team-based approach, involving PEARLS counselors, supervising psychiatrists and medical providers
• aims to improve quality of life as well as reduce depressive symptoms, and
• is well-suited for individuals with chronic illness

How It Started

The PEARLS Program was developed at the University of Washington in the late 1990s by a team led by Dr. Ed Wagner, who is a primary developer of the Chronic Care Model. During the past decade, two randomized controlled trials funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and conducted by researchers at the University of Washington Health Promotion Research Center have demonstrated that the PEARLS Program is effective in reducing depressive symptoms and improving quality of life in older adults and all-age adults with epilepsy. The PEARLS Program has been disseminated successfully in communities throughout the United States, and each year more individuals and organizations enroll in PEARLS training so that they can offer the PEARLS Program to individuals in their community.