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Collaborations Make Aging in Place a Reality for People Living with Mental Illness
When we say someone is “aging in place” what do we mean? If a person remains in the same home or setting as they age, does that qualify? The New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH) has been exploring this question in the context of the service delivery system, most integrated setting...
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Flushing Hospital Medical Center: Leveraging the Geriatric Service Demonstration Program to Sustain Integrated Care for Patients
In order to lay the groundwork for systems change to better meet the needs of older adults in New York State, the Geriatric Mental Health Act was enacted on August 23, 2005. The law authorized the establishment of the Interagency Geriatric Mental Health and Chemical Dependence Planning Council, the...
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How Senior Centers Combat Isolation
Whether it’s due to distance or the passing of friends and family, many older adults find themselves outside of the social circles to which they once belonged. Now aged and reliant on others for help, many seniors become isolated and depressed, which can have devastating effects on physical and...
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Impact of Social Isolation Among Older Adults Living with a Mental Health Diagnosis
Risk of social isolation and resulting loneliness becomes increasingly more prevalent as we age, lose friends and family, and navigate chronic health conditions. Situational factors including diminished social and familial roles, together with physical limitations increase the incidence of...
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A Geriatric Substance Abuse Recovery Program
Substance abuse among the geriatric population is often overlooked or ignored, despite the finding that almost a fifth of older adults misuse drugs and/or alcohol (Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, 2012), and evidence showing the detrimental impact of substance abuse on elders’ quality of...
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Addressing the Urgent Treatment and Housing Needs of Older Adults
In the midst of a devastating opioid epidemic, much of the attention has focused on the impact on younger populations, but there is another group struggling with substance use disorders: senior citizens. As baby boomers head towards their senior years, the number of older Americans with substance...
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Deaths of Despair: Social Research Suggests Troubling Trends for the Next Generation of Older Adults
Recent social research suggests that the next generation of older adults may be more troubled than the current and previous generations. This, of course, is counterintuitive. 70 is the new 50, we say; 80 the new 60. We are living longer, and we are healthier, right? Yes, but will the next...
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A Good Place to Live Is Critical for Older Adults with Psychiatric Disabilities: Needed Public Policy Changes
Not so many years ago a diagnosis of schizophrenia was a life sentence, shortened only by the low life expectancy of people with serious and persistent mental illness. Thanks to the recovery movement, we now understand that a diagnosis of schizophrenia or other serious psychotic disorder does not...
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Mental Illness and Homeless Baby-Boomers: What Can Be Done?
Greater longevity combined with the aging of the baby-boom generation is rapidly increasing the 50-and-over age group in the United States. The greatest surge will be seen among the population aged 65 and over, which is expected to increase by 65% by 2030 (“Demographics of an aging America”...
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When the Therapist Comes to You: A Model Home Visiting Program for Seniors
Sarah is 95 years old and is determined to live out her days in the small New York City apartment she has called home for over 60 years. Her walls are covered with four generations of family photographs, and her shelves are filled with books and mementos of her work as a teacher and travels with...
