In an effort to address an increase in cases of depression among senior citizens, North Valley Hospital in Whitefish has started a program aimed at helping people 55 and older suffering from mental health disorders.
“We have a growing and aging population, especially here in the north end of the valley. Depression often goes unnoticed in the elderly,” program director Mary Jane Fox said, adding that it is one of the leading causes of suicide.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health, people 65 and older accounted for 12 percent of the population in the United States in 2004, yet the same population accounted for 16 percent of all suicides. Fox said it is even more concerning in the Flathead Valley, an area with an increasing elderly population and some of the highest rates of suicide in Montana.
The Geriatric Care and Mental Health Advisory Council in Flathead County was formed to raise awareness and coordinate efforts between area hospitals for “high risk members of our geriatric population.” Courtney Rudbach, chairperson of the group, said the mental health issues seniors suffer and the lack of efforts to address it has often been called the “silver tsunami.”
“I think we sometimes disregard what the elderly are going through because we have this stereotype of a grumpy old man or a grumpy old woman without thinking of where they’re coming from,” she said.
Rudbach said most seniors come from an era when mental health needs were often disregarded and no one went to a psychologist.
But now North Valley Hospital is offering both primary and mental health care in hopes of helping the area’s elderly population. With the Embrace Health program, which started last month, adults 55 and older can now meet with a psychologist who can prescribe medication or therapy. According to Fox, therapy comes in two forms, either one-on-one with a psychologist or with a group of like-minded seniors.
Currently there are seven people active in the program and the results have been positive so far.
Rudback said one of the biggest issues facing seniors is a loss of identity, either from retirement or the death of a companion and this program helps address that.
“It fills a gap that Flathead and Lincoln counties don’t have (in medical care),” said Catherine Todd, director of marketing at North Valley Hospital.
Though the program is still in its early stages, Todd said the hospital is contacting area senior centers and homes making it known to the community this new service is available. Patients can pay for the program through Medicaid or Medicare and some insurance providers.
For more information visit www.nvhosp.org, or call 406-862-4763.