scholarly journals What's in a name? Views on psychiatric services for older people

2006 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 97-100
Author(s):  
Fionnuala Kelly ◽  
Julianne Reidy ◽  
Gregory Swanwick
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Old Age ◽  
General Practitioners ◽  
Psychiatric Service ◽  
Psychiatric Services ◽  
Clinical Implications ◽  
Clinical Use ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Hospital Doctors ◽  
Over Time

Aims and MethodThe aim of this study was to provide a name for a psychiatric service for older people in Dublin. A total of 296 individuals (167 doctors, 129 workshop attendees) were surveyed regarding their views on a name for the service.Results‘Age-related psychiatry’ was a universally popular term. It was chosen by 43% of general practitioners, 56% of hospital doctors and 44% of the workshop attendees, as one of their top three choices. ‘Psychiatry of old age’, ‘geriatric psychiatry’ and ‘psychogeriatrics' were unpopular with all three groups.Clinical ImplicationsNames can gradually become stigmatising over time. This applies to the terms for ‘old’ and ‘psychiatry’. In this survey all groups surveyed rejected some of the terms in widespread clinical use.

Heroines, villains and victims: older people's perceptions of others

2006 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 883-900 ◽  
Author(s):  
JEAN TOWNSEND ◽  
MARY GODFREY ◽  
TRACY DENBY
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Age Changes ◽  
Negative Stereotypes ◽  
Self Identity ◽  
People With Dementia ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Physical Limitations ◽  
Inclusive Society ◽  
People’S Perceptions

This paper examines older people's contrasting images of older people as ‘those like us’ and as ‘others’. It draws on data from a qualitative study about the experience of ageing that was undertaken in partnership with two local groups of older people in England. Whilst the informants acknowledged their chronological age, changes in appearance and physical limitations, most did not describe themselves as old. They challenged the idea of older people as being ‘past it’. Older people who personified their own values of inter-dependence, reciprocity and keeping going were seen as ‘heroines’ of old age, but negative stereotypes were ascribed simultaneously to others, ‘the villains’. Aspects of behaviour which evoked censure were ‘giving up’; ‘refusal to be helped’ and ‘taking without putting back’, and were usually attributed to acquaintances known only at a distance. The victims of old age were primarily people with dementia, who were perceived as ‘needing to be looked after’ and objects of pity and concern. The paper explores the ways in which these various images of old age related to people's self-identity and management of the ageing process; especially in a society that has ambivalent conceptions of old age. The findings contribute to an understanding of how people's values underpin their conception of ‘a good old age’ and how they shape their interpretation of societal stereotypes. They also indicate the importance of considering whose voices are heard in the context of exploring the identity and contributions of older people to achieve a more inclusive society.

Do Older People Receive Equitable Private Psychiatric Service Provision Under Medicare?

2001 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 626-630 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian M Draper ◽  
Annette Koschera
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Service Provision ◽  
Psychiatric Service ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Psychiatric Services ◽  
Age Group ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Item Statistics ◽  
Per Capita ◽  
Medicare Expenditure

Objective: The objective of this study is to determine the 1998 rates, types, regional variation and Medicare expenditure of private psychiatry services for older people in Australia, as compared with younger adults and with 1985–1986 data. Method: Medicare Benefits Schedule Item Statistics for the psychiatric item numbers 300–352 and item 14224 were obtained from the Health Insurance Commission for each State and Territory. The items were examined in the age groups 15–64 years, 65 years and over and 75 years and over. Main outcome measures were per capita service provision by age group, State and Territory and Medicare expenditure by age group. Results: During 1998, 6.4% (5765.6 per 100 000) of private psychiatric services were to patients aged > 64 years. Patients aged 15–64 received 2.7 times the number of psychiatric services per capita than patients > 64 and 3.6 times that of patients aged > 74 years. Patients aged > 64 received more hospital and nursing home consultations, home visits and electroconvulsive therapy per capita, while younger adults used more office-based consultations, longer consultations, and group therapy. Victoria had the highest per capita rate (7659.2 per 100 000) and the Northern Territory the lowest (540.4 per 100 000), although the highest proportion of services to older patients was in Western Australia. Per capita the proportion of Medicare expenditure allocated to adults aged less than 65 years was 4.1 times that for adults over 64 years. Conclusions: Private psychiatric service provision to older people is inequitable when compared with younger adults. The proportion of Medicare private psychiatry expenditure on older adults has declined since 1985–1986.

Diagnosing undernutrition in elderly people

1997 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 367-371 ◽  
Author(s):  
SE Gariballa ◽  
AJ Sinclair
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Elderly People ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Environmental Exposures ◽  
Lifestyle Factors ◽  
Cumulative Effects ◽  
Age Related

One of the greatest challenges of medicine in old age is for physicians to understand the process of aging and to be able to distinguish it from disease, lifestyle factors and environmental exposures whose cumulative effects account for many of the changes observed in older people. As a result, physicians have a duty to recognize and intervene appropriately against age-related diseases.

scholarly journals Factors affecting primary care practitioners’ alcohol-related discussions with older adults: Qualitative study

2021 ◽  
pp. BJGP.2020.1118
Author(s):  
Bethany Kate Bareham ◽  
Jemma Stewart ◽  
Eileen Kaner ◽  
Barbara Hanratty
Keyword(s):  
Primary Care ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Older People ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Long Term Conditions ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Comparison Results ◽  
Primary Care Practitioners

Background: Risk of harm from drinking is heightened in later life, due to age-related sensitivities to alcohol. Primary care services have a key role in supporting older people to make healthier decisions about alcohol. Aim: To examine primary care practitioners’ perceptions of factors that promote and challenge their work to support older people in alcohol risk-reduction. Design and Setting: Qualitative study consisting of semi-structured interviews and focus groups with primary care practitioners in Northern England. Method: Thirty-five practitioners (general practitioners, practice/district nurses, pharmacists, dentists, social care practitioners, domiciliary carers) participated in eight interviews and five focus groups. Data were analysed thematically, applying principles of constant comparison. Results: Practitioners highlighted particular sensitivities amongst older people to discussing alcohol, and reservations about older people’s resistance to making changes in old age; given drinking practices could be established, and promote socialisation and emotional wellbeing in later life. Age-related health issues increased older people’s contact with practitioners; but management of older people’s long-term conditions was prioritised over discussion of alcohol. Dedicated time to address alcohol in routine consultations with older people, and training in alcohol intervention facilitated practitioners; particularly pharmacists and practice nurses. Conclusion: There are clear opportunities to support older people in primary care to make healthier decisions about alcohol. Dedicated time to address alcohol, training in identification of alcohol-related risks, particularly those associated with old age; and tailored interventions for older people, feasible to implement in practice settings, would support primary care practitioners to address older people’s alcohol use.

scholarly journals Psychotherapy and old age psychiatry

1999 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 149-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jane Garner
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Older Patients ◽  
Psychological Intervention ◽  
Clinical Implications ◽  
Emotional Life ◽  
The Future ◽  
Old Age Psychiatry

Aims and MethodsThis report was prepared as the basis for wider consultation within the Old Age Faculty and the College. Some literature and practice is reviewed and practical suggestions made for the future in this area.ResultsAlthough older patients are less likely to be refused for psychological intervention attitudes are slowly changing.Clinical implicationsThe clinical implications of this development include a greater consideration of the unique emotional life of each of our patients and an improved understanding of our reluctance to engage in psychotherapeutic work with older people.

scholarly journals The burgeoning interest in young onset dementia: redressing the balance or reinforcing ageism?

2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 9-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward Tolhurst
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Conceptual Model ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Critical Evaluation ◽  
Social World ◽  
People With Dementia ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Growing Body ◽  
Young Onset Dementia ◽  
Social Scientific

Critical evaluation is undertaken of social scientific conceptualisations of dementia in relation to ageing. In response to the societal tendency to associate dementia with old age, there is a growing body of literature that seeks to explicate the particular challenges faced by younger people with the condition. While recognition of the distinctive impacts presented by dementia at different ages is crucial, an age-related conceptual model that focuses on a lifecourse divide at age 65 is problematic: it promulgates a sense that younger people with dementia have ‘‘unique’’ experiences, while dementia for older people is typical. This also reflects a societal ageism, under which concerns are focused on those situated within ‘‘productive adulthood.’’ Moreover, a straightforward chronological marker cannot adequately represent a social world shaped by significant demographic changes. A more textured appreciation of ageing and dementia is required to help articulate how distinctive experiences emerge across the lifecourse.

Old Age in European Cultures: A Significant Presence from Antiquity to the Present

2020 ◽  
Vol 125 (2) ◽  
pp. 385-395
Author(s):  
Pat Thane
Keyword(s):  
Older People ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Economic Changes ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Government Bureaucracy ◽  
Widespread Belief

Abstract Contrary to widespread belief, significant numbers of people have lived long lives throughout recorded history. On average, women have lived longer than men. Definitions of old age as beginning between the ages of sixty and seventy have been remarkably consistent through time, despite major social and economic changes, as has government enforcement of age-related regulations, increasingly as government bureaucracy grew from the eighteenth to the twentieth centuries. Despite long-prevailing simplified stereotypes, the reality of old age has always been highly diverse. Nowhere have people been respected or cared for simply because of their age; nor have all been frail dependents. Some have always been active to late ages, making positive, independent contributions to their families and communities, a fact that is too often overlooked by historians. Older people have mattered in all cultures and should not be overlooked.

scholarly journals Age as an Element of Diversity: Intergenerational Discussion to Improve Age-Related Attitudes

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 532-532
Author(s):  
Lisa Wagner ◽  
Tana Luger
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Young People ◽  
Older People ◽  
Younger Adults ◽  
Educational Funding ◽  
Health Funding ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Generational Groups ◽  
Societal Problems ◽  
Over Time

Abstract All generations must work together solving societal problems, yet age-related stereotypes are used to divide generations. Age derogation motivates younger people to vote by creating fear of an older White voting generation (Dear young people, don’t vote; 2018), and to belittle older people (“Okay, Boomer…”). Demonizing older people creates prejudice within families asking that people target loved ones, for example, by pitting educational funding for young against health funding for older adults. Neither group wins when divisiveness occurs. Generation to Generation, an intergenerational course for older and younger adults, promotes intergenerational contact. Students discuss topical issues (e.g., racism) in multi-generational groups. Using pretest-posttest design, all students were invited to complete questionnaires at beginning and end of term. Younger adults reported significant increases in affection, comfort, kinship, engagement and enthusiasm for older adults, whereas older adults showed stability over time. Intergenerational discussion may facilitate improved connections between generations.

scholarly journals The Development of ‘Age Appropriate’ Living Environments: Analysis of Two Case Studies from a Social Work Perspective

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 123-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlo Fabian ◽  
Sandra Janett ◽  
Tobias Bischoff ◽  
Riccardo Pardini ◽  
Johanna Leitner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Older People ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Place Studies ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Age Appropriate ◽  
Living Environments ◽  
New City

As the growing number of older people, particularly in urban areas, and changing lifestyles are increasing the importance of continuing to live in the community (ageing in place), studies show that age-related planning of living environments is often shaped by stereotypes, and that the needs of present and future older people are not sufficiently taken into account. In this context, two case studies based on Henri Lefebvre’s theory presented in his book The Production of Space investigate how ‘age-appropriate’ living environments are conceived, practiced and lived, and to what extent age-related stereotypes affect these processes. The two cases examined are an intergenerational project to promote physical activity and the development of a new city square. For both cases, interviews and walkthroughs were conducted with experts from various planning disciplines, as well as with current and future older people. The findings show that in planning practice the notions of old age and older people often remain diffuse and, at the same time, older people are often seen as a homogeneous and fragile group. The results indicate that the importance given to neighbourhood in old age can vary greatly. For social work, this implies that older people should be even more involved in the design of their living environments, through participatory processes, in order to better meet the heterogeneity of their needs.

General practitioners' selection of patients for treatment in community psychiatric services

1986 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 611-619 ◽  
Author(s):  
Povl Munk-Jørgensen
Keyword(s):  
General Practitioners ◽  
Psychiatric Service ◽  
Psychiatric Morbidity ◽  
Psychiatric Services ◽  
Social Impairment ◽  
Social Contacts ◽  
Community Psychiatric ◽  
Community Psychiatric Service ◽  
Selection Of Patients ◽  
Selection Of

SynopsisIn a Danish community psychiatric service the patients referred from general practitioners (GPs) to the community psychiatric service (CPS) are compared with matched individuals with conspicuous psychiatric morbidity treated in general practice only. The psychopathology of the referred patients is more severe, as estimated by two different methods. They make fewer social contacts and their work situations are unfavourable. It was found that to a great extent the GPs refer their patients with mental disorders to the CPS so that the ‘filter’ between the GP and the CPS is very permeable. Of the patients treated by the GPs only (the matched group), no more than 54% were assessed by a psychiatrist as psychiatric ‘cases’. Psychopathology thus only partly determines the GPs' assessment of psychiatric ‘caseness’, in which social impairment plays an important part. The GPs diagnose more mental disorder than the psychiatrists, possibly because of an intimate acquaintance with the anamnesis.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document