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Foundation Board Members Discuss
Challenges and Solutions Facing Older Adult Mental Health Care
Following, three members of the GMHF Board of Directors discuss
how they became involved with the Foundation and what they feel
are the biggest challenges and solutions facing older adult mental
health care today.
Hikmah Gardiner
“Mental health care is still scarce in minority arenas. Minorities
usually are the last to get the good news. It’s important
to engage minorities, since we are a land of many faces and colors
and shapes, so that people can take the message back to their communities.
That is a part of my role within the Foundation.
“Just being able to get the care is the biggest challenge
facing older adults needing mental health care. With everything
that is happening today with Medicare, Social Security, and Medicaid,
it scares me to think about it getting more difficult for older
folks to obtain care. It is just unconscionable. Old folks don’t
cry out, as I do, and nobody pays attention to them. That’s
one of my jobs—to get folks to notice.
“Let’s take my state of Pennsylvania for example. We
have the highest population of 65-plus individuals of any state
except Florida and the numbers are growing. Older people are living
longer, and I don’t know if society is really prepared for
this. We need more lobbying for seniors—we need more Steve
Bartels [GMHF Board member] and Hikmah Gardiners. We need to put
more money into programs for seniors. Legislators need to be educated
more about the needs of older people, as does the general population.”
George Kotwitz
“I have been an advocate for older adults for several years,
since I experienced a late-life onset of bipolar illness. I began
speaking at the National Association of State Mental Health Program
Directors (NASMHPD) conferences approximately 10 years ago as a
consumer involved in a mental health and aging coalition. I was
asked if I would be interested in serving on the GMHF board. I felt
the GMHF would be an excellent place to voice my concerns with the
present lack of programs for older adult consumers. The Foundation
has played an important role in pinpointing specific needs of older
adult mental health consumers.
“One of the biggest challenges facing older adults is the
idea that it is their responsibility to take care of their own problems
without asking anyone for help. My generation was taught to ‘tough
it out,’ and my problems were mine to own and fix the best
way I could. Today effective treatments for mental illnesses exist,
and older adults should not be ashamed to ask for and get the help
they need.
“The next greatest challenge is to teach general practitioners
to look at mental as well as physical symptoms. Many physical illnesses
are exacerbated by the failure to treat depression. General practitioners
and their patients would also benefit from education about the different
medications available for older adults. And, more attention should
be given to the caretaker, who may also be elderly and in need of
mental health treatment.”
Martha L. Bruce, MPH, PhD
“When I was invited to join the Foundation Board, I already
knew a lot about the Foundation’s mission and activities because
of its growing presence at the annual meetings of the American Association
for Geriatric Psychiatry. It was a natural progression for me to
become involved.
“I’m a researcher, but it’s important to me to
be able to help people in a direct way as well as with my work.
The Foundation works with older people and their families in the
areas of education and improving services—it provides a forum
for interaction with older people. I like knowing that my work with
the Foundation contributes directly to the well-being of older adults
and their families.
“Aside from the simple challenge of being able to afford
care, the biggest challenge facing older adults needing mental health
care and their families is probably the combination of ageism and
stigma that remains in our society. Even as society becomes more
accepting of mental illness as a real illness, we still have to
deal with the impact of ageism. Ageism leads to the belief that
it is normal—inevitable—that people will suffer from
depression, dementia, and other mental illnesses as they age. It
is an ongoing challenge to change societal attitudes towards older
adults, especially to generate support for the rights of older adults
to good mental health and access to services. Education and empowerment
are the keys to this issue.
“The solution is multifaceted. In part the solution rests
in political activism, that is, giving consumer groups the opportunity
to air their issues like the Foundation did in 2005 at the consumer
forum in San Diego. Finding a solution also involves increasing
the research base. Research provides the evidence that it is possible
to reduce the risk of mental health problems for older adults, to
increase their access to care when needed, and to provide high-quality
mental health services with the expectation of positive outcomes.
As a society, we must have the political and social will to pursue
these changes.”
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