Older People Missing Out on Mental Health Services
Posted on: Wednesday, 30 November 2005, 06:00 CST
By Anonymous
MENTAL HEALTH
Mental health charity Mind has released a new report, which claims that mental health service provision for older people is well below par.
Access all ages reveals that, despite the prevalence of poor mental health among older people, they receive an unequal service in terms of treatment.
Despite people over 55 accounting for a staggering one third of suicides and one in six people developing clinical depression by the age of 65, the report says that older people face age discrimination, lack of treatment choice and discontinuation of services.
Many mental health service users discover that, when they reach 65, their care management ceases to be delivered using the Care Programme Approach and instead they become subject to the Single Assessment Process in England or Unified Assessment Process in Wales, a care and risk management system for people over 65. This can happen without the individual concerned being informed or consulted.
While both aim for a holistic assessment process involving health and social care professionals, the emphasis on mental health risk is lost.
The National Service framework for Mental Health only covers people up to the age of 65, after which their mental health concerns are only covered by the non-dedicated National Service framework for Older People.
This NSF has no protected funds or dedicated resources, and mental health requirements are lost among the many other areas covered.
Some of the 489 people involved in the research for the Mind report also said they felt as though they were made a low priority for non-medicinal therapies such as psychotherapy and cognitive behavioural therapy.
The report heralded the launch of a Mind campaign of the same name, demanding that the government, PCTs and local health boards act together to ensure that older people have the same level and quality of support and treatment available to others.
Mind chief executive, Richard Brooke, said: 'Access all ages highlights the shameful neglect of this vulnerable and often isolated group of people. The sudden removal of services and treatment at the age of 65 clearly causes great distress to many people - this unfair discrimination must be removed.'
* The Mind report, Access all ages, can be downloaded from the Mind website: www.mind.org.uk
Copyright TG Scott & Son Ltd. Nov 2005
Source: Community Practitioner
Related Articles
- Jim Kerwin of Oxford Communications Donates $12,500 to the Bermuda Health Foundation Salute to Service Awards Luncheon
- Statement From Larry Minnix, President & CEO of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, on the Senate Finance Committee Hearing 'The Role of Long-term Care in Health Reform' and the Reintroduction of the CLASS Act
- American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging Joins the National Healthcare Career Network As Founding Partner
- Value Health Plus and Americare Services to Host Healthcare Symposium and Luncheon for Dallas-Area Small Businesses
- Research and Markets: Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services - Industry Profile
- Organic Baby & Toddler Care Market Assessment 2007
- Statement From Larry Minnix, President & CEO, American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging (AAHSA), on the Introduction of the CLASS Act
- North Carolina State Health Plan Selects Health Dialog to Provide Whole Person Care Management Services; More Than 490,000 Members and Dependents Gain Access to Health Coaching and Related Support
- The Older Driver Comes of Age
- THE MATURE MIND: The Power of the Aging Brain
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds