The Role of Clinical Psychologists in Psychogeriatrics

1982 ◽  
Vol 45 (7) ◽  
pp. 237-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas Leng

There has been a steady increase in the proportion of elderly people in the population, especially those over the age of 75, and the main reasons are increased life expectancy and a reduced birth rate. Consequently health and social services will be under continuing pressure from the problems which these people present. Estimates of the incidence of dementia, for example, range from 6 to 10%. In addition elderly people are more likely to suffer from disability resulting from physical conditions such as stroke, and psychological problems such as depression are also common, resulting from environmental changes such as physical infirmity, pain, bereavement, hospitalisation, retirement and disengagement, and relocation. Clinical Psychologists are now beginning to make a contribution to the provision of psychogeriatric services, as this article outlines.

Author(s):  
Harry Minas

This chapter provides an overview of what is known about prevalence, social determinants, treatment, and course and impact of depression in developing, or low- and middle-income, countries. The importance of culture in depression and in the construction and application of diagnostic classifications and in health and social services is highlighted, with a particular focus on the applicability of ‘Western’ diagnostic constructs and service systems in developing country settings. The role of international organizations, such as WHO, and international development programs, such as the SDGs, in improving our understanding of depression and in developing effective and culturally appropriate responses is briefly examined. There is both a need and increasing opportunities in developing countries for greater commitment to mental health of populations, increased investment in mental health and social services, and culturally informed research that will contribute to improved global understanding of mental disorders in general and depression in particular.


Author(s):  
Ilaria Chirico ◽  
Rabih Chattat ◽  
Vladimíra Dostálová ◽  
Pavla Povolná ◽  
Iva Holmerová ◽  
...  

There is evidence supporting the use of psychosocial interventions in dementia care. Due to the role of policy in clinical practice, the present study investigates whether and how the issue of psychosocial care and interventions has been addressed in the national dementia plans and strategies across Europe. A total of 26 national documents were found. They were analyzed by content analysis to identify the main pillars associated with the topic of psychosocial care and interventions. Specifically, three categories emerged: (1) Treatment, (2) Education, and (3) Research. The first one was further divided into three subcategories: (1) Person-centred conceptual framework, (2) Psychosocial interventions, and (3) Health and social services networks. Overall, the topic of psychosocial care and interventions has been addressed in all the country policies. However, the amount of information provided differs across the documents, with only the category of ‘Treatment’ covering all of them. Furthermore, on the basis of the existing policies, how the provision of psychosocial care and interventions would be enabled, and how it would be assessed are not fully apparent yet. Findings highlight the importance of policies based on a comprehensive and well-integrated system of care, where the issue of psychosocial care and interventions is fully embedded.


JAMA ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 320 (21) ◽  
pp. 2197 ◽  
Author(s):  
William H. Shrank ◽  
Donna J. Keyser ◽  
John G. Lovelace

1985 ◽  
Vol 56 (3) ◽  
pp. 889-890
Author(s):  
Chris Phillipson ◽  
Patricia Strang

In the present study a sentence completion list was administered to a range of community carers in the health and social services. Analysis of information from 334 respondents indicated statistically significant differences regarding perceptions about older people. The responses of the different groups indicated attitudinal support for developing a range of preventive strategies in the field of social and health care. There was some evidence, however, that workers held stereotyped views about the lives of older people.


1993 ◽  
Vol 56 (4) ◽  
pp. 120-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jackie Pool

In piloting an occupational therapy service in Hampshire Social Services' homes for elderly people, it became evident that the occupational therapy philosophy of enabling independence was perceived by the staff of the homes to be contrary to their role as carers. An approach was required which could demonstrate that the concept of care was not incompatible with that of independence and the CARE© approach was developed. This uses a mnemonic device to show that there are four factors that combine to result in the act of caring: Communicating, Assisting, Rehabilitating and Empathising. When all four factors are present, independence is promoted by enabling the elderly person to function to his/her maximum potential. The CARE approach is currently being used in Hampshire Social Services' homes for elderly people in training programmes for staff. The approach is appropriate to anyone who is involved in caring for others. It is used as a framework that assists the carer to make the transition to the role of an enabler.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Merkel ◽  
Moritz Hess

BACKGROUND Digital health care is becoming increasingly important, but it has the risk of further increasing the digital divide, as not all individuals have the opportunity, skills, and knowledge to fully benefit from potential advantages. In particular, elderly people have less experience with the internet, and hence, they are in danger of being excluded. Knowledge on the influences of the adoption of internet-based health and care services by elderly people will help to develop and promote strategies for decreasing the digital divide. OBJECTIVE This study examined if and how elderly people are using digital services to access health and social care. Moreover, it examined what personal characteristics are associated with using these services and if there are country differences. METHODS Data for this study were obtained from the Special Eurobarometer 460 (SB 460), which collected data on Europeans’ handling of and attitudes toward digital technologies, robots, and artificial intelligence, including data on the use of internet-based health and social care services, among 27,901 EU citizens aged 15 years or older. Multilevel logistic regression models were adopted to analyze the association of using the internet for health and social care services with several individual and country-level variables. RESULTS At the individual level, young age, high education, high social class, and living in an urban area were positively associated with a high probability of using internet-based health and social services. At the country level, the proportion of elderly people who participated in any training activity within the last month was positively associated with the proportion of elderly people using these services. CONCLUSIONS The probability of using internet-based health and social services and their accompanying advantages strongly depend on the socioeconomic background. Training and educational programs might be helpful to mitigate these differences.


2018 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 129-140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saija Katila

Abstraction of the narrative The paper aims to evoke readers’ reflective and affective capacities and thereby facilitate understanding of the multisensorial, affective, and relational nature of knowing and becoming. It highlights the role of embodied knowing in becoming by following the journey of an individual faced with sudden trauma. It describes the affective energies crossing time and space in the continuously changing sociomaterial networks of relationships encountered in different organizational settings, be they in academia, health and social services, family, or otherwise. The paper is based on an auto-ethnographic narrative of becoming a mother that connects individual experiences with cultural understandings. The narrative is an outcome of a diffractive analysis of becoming; knowing emerges during the course of a writing process in which theoretical understandings, emotions, concepts, discourses, embodied experiences, and affects come together. The paper brings out the multiplicity of contradictory discourses involved in knowing and becoming. In so doing, it highlights the entangled coexistence of body and mind, reality and imagination, public and private, reason and emotion, as well as past, present, and future.


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