title: The use of reminiscence therapy for the treatment of depression in rural-dwelling older adults.
abstract: This article explores the potential for the use of reminiscence therapy as an effective means of reducing depression among institutionalized, rural-dwelling elders, especially elderly women. Reminiscence therapy is a nurse-initiated intervention that has the advantages of being cost-effective, therapeutic, social, and recreational for the institutionalized older adult. As a communicative psychosocial process, reminiscence therapy has proven to be a valuable intervention for the depressed elderly client (Cully, LaVoie, & Gfeller, 2001; Haight & Hendrix, 1998; Haight, Michel, & Hendrix, 1998, 2000). It has been shown that depressed elders living in rural areas resist treatment from mental health services for a variety of different reasons (Molinari, Boeve, Kunik, & Snow-Turek, 1999; Neese, Abraham, & Buckwalter, 1999). For those elders, reminiscence therapy may prove an extremely beneficial alternative to more traditional treatment modalities in reducing the effects of depression and depressive symptoms.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Greensboro, NC 27402-6172, USA. ellen_jones@uncg.edu
authors.forename: Ellen Davis
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Beck-Little
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000451:nursing / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006707:Homes for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009735:Nursing Homes; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D012424:Rural Population; D014481:United States