DEPRESSION AND MENTAL HEALTH CARE IN OLDER ADULTS
DID YOU KNOW...
20%
Older adults aged 65 and over will make up more than 20% of U.S. residents by 2030, and in 2050, this population will reach 83.7 million.
20%
20% of people age 55+ have some sort of mental health issue experiences. Among those most common conditions, depression is the most prevalent problem for individuals in their late life.
1/10
1 in 10 older adults with Medicare reported depression or anxiety in 2018. Worse still, 1 in 4 older adults reports anxiety or depression amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
WHAT IS DEPRESSION IN OLDER ADULTS?
Nowadays, depression among older adults is becoming a major public health concern, projected to be the 2nd leading cause of disease burden.
Clinical depression is more than just feeling sad or blue, but a common and serious disorder of the brain that needs treatment. People with depression may experience persistent sadness, withdrawal from previously enjoyed activities, sleeping problems, physical discomforts, feeling “slowed down”, etc.
Current research tells us that depression is caused by a combination of genetic, biological, environmental, and psychological factors. Many studies have found some risk factors for late-onset depression included widowhood, physical illness, low educational level (less than high school), impaired functional status, and heavy substance consumption. Depression can complicate chronic conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, and stroke; increase health care costs; and often accompany functional impairment and disability. Moreover, it is not only tied to higher mortality and suicidal rate, but also can lead to impairments in mental and social functioning.
BARRIERS & STIGMA
Access to Mental Health Care
Although the rate of older adults with depressive symptoms tends to increase with age, DEPRESSION IS NOT A NORMAL PART OF AGING.
Although depression is one of the most successfully treated illnesses, unfortunately, depression is a widely under-recognized condition and often are untreated or undertreated among older adults. Worse still, it is often misdiagnosed, or written off as dementia.
Many older adults tend to have a stigma against mental illness. Many of them are reluctant to seek help because they feel shameful, believe that depression represents personal failure and a sign of weakness, or will lead to a loss of autonomy. This becomes encouraged more when society plays a pivotal role in determining social norms and creating a culture of stigma surrounding mental health disorders.
Ageism and erroneous assumptions that depression is a normal part of aging may lead to missing a potential depression diagnosis. Depressive disorders are commonly under-recognized in older adults, and they often go misdiagnosed or are written off as having dementia.
Medicare and other insurers do not cover depression care unless it is provided by physicians, psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, or advanced RN practitioners. Without financial resources, however, it is difficult to provide properly trained and supervised staff to deliver the Evidence-Based Practices.
Public health departments and many agencies on aging do not traditionally work together in the area of mental health. This might cause the problem that research completed often sits on the shelf without being properly disseminated and used.
OUR MOVEMENT
What We Do
AWARENESS
As a large movement of Social Workers, outreach is close to our hearts. We believe that society can promote older adults' emotional well-being by raising awareness. Understanding the stigma and barriers that older adults as a marginalized population is facing when it comes to mental health, and this is the first step in bettering the quality of life they live.
ADVOCACY
A significant way of addressing stigma would be for the public and practitioners to better understand that depression is common and treatable, and more importantly, not a natural part of aging.
Policymakers should understand that Evidence-Based Practices for depression can improve treatment outcomes and lower health care costs. Treating depression effectively also can help improve the outcomes of many other chronic diseases.
The public health, mental health, and aging services networks need to work together more closely to overcome those barriers. Building collaboration and partnership would allow consistent information to better package and be disseminated.
On the financing side, Medicare and other insurers should cover evidence-based programs for depression, giving more older adults access to depression treatment.
