Management of the mental health of ambulatory elderly patients.
Geriatric health care practice strives to respond to the medical, psychologic and social needs of the elderly person through coordinating the services of the physician and the psychiatric social worker. In a geriatric clinic at the George Washington University Medical Center, the medical regimen for elderly ambulatory patients is supported and augmented by psychotherapy, counseling, behavioral therapy, and instruction of the family about the patient's need for environmental or residential changes. A review of the records of 40 elderly patients initially enrolled in the geriatric clinic program showed that 20 were in need of mental health support. Among these, 8 had a depressive disorder, 1 had paraphrenia, 2 had longstanding schizophrenia, and the rest showed mental decline secondary to organic brain syndrome. The geriatrician and the psychiatric social worker were able to provide sufficient mental health support for these elderly mental patients to permit them to remain in the community for worthwhile periods. Ambulatory geriatric patients, especially those with mental health impairment, can benefit greatly from services offered in a comprehensive fashion by a geriatrician and a psychiatric social worker.
D000368:Aged; D000553:Ambulatory Care; D003376:Counseling; D004219:District of Columbia; D005260:Female; D005853:Geriatrics; D006746:Hospital Bed Capacity, 500 and over; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D010044:Outpatient Clinics, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010348:Patient Care Team; D011613:Psychotherapy