Gonçalves Daniela C, Coelho Carlos M, Byrne Gerard J
Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, New Radcliffe House, 2nd floor, Walton Street, Jericho OX2 6NW, UK; School of Medicine, University of Queensland, Herston, QLD 4029, Australia.
Centro Algoritmi, University of Minho, Campus Azurém, 4800-058 Guimarães, Portugal.
Arch Gerontol Geriatr. 2014 Sep-Oct;59(2):393-7. doi: 10.1016/j.archger.2014.04.013. Epub 2014 May 4.
Although mental disorders occur commonly in later life, it has been reported that older adults are reluctant to seek help for their mental health problems. The purpose of this research study was to analyze the contact with healthcare professionals, self-perceived mental health problems and unmet needs, as reported by a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling adults. We report a cross-sectional analysis of all the respondents of the Australian National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing aged 55 years and older (N=3178). Results indicated that 306 (9.6%) participants had a DSM-IV classifiable mental disorder based on self-identified symptoms over the preceding 12 months. Of these, 146 (48%) reported that they had not consulted a healthcare professional to deal with their mental health problems. Among those who consulted with a healthcare professional, the general practitioner was the main point of contact. Medication and psychotherapy/counseling were the most frequent form of help obtained. Informational and instrumental help, such as help to sort out practical problems and to look after oneself, were the most reported unmet needs. These results suggest a gap in the provision of healthcare services for mental health problems directed toward the specific needs of aging adults. The reported unmet needs might be met by increasing awareness amongst healthcare professionals regarding mental health problems in later stages of life and by improving the access of older people to the services commonly provided by multidisciplinary teams.
尽管精神障碍在晚年很常见，但据报道，老年人不愿为自己的心理健康问题寻求帮助。本研究的目的是分析一个具有全国代表性的社区居住成年人样本报告的与医疗保健专业人员的接触情况、自我感知的心理健康问题和未满足的需求。我们报告了对澳大利亚全国心理健康和幸福调查中所有55岁及以上受访者（N = 3178）的横断面分析。结果表明，306名（9.6%）参与者在过去12个月中根据自我识别的症状患有DSM-IV可分类的精神障碍。其中，146名（48%）报告称他们没有咨询过医疗保健专业人员来处理他们的心理健康问题。在咨询过医疗保健专业人员的人中，全科医生是主要的接触点。药物治疗和心理治疗/咨询是最常获得的帮助形式。信息和工具性帮助，如帮助解决实际问题和照顾自己，是报告最多的未满足需求。这些结果表明，针对老年人的特定需求，心理健康问题的医疗保健服务提供存在差距。通过提高医疗保健专业人员对晚年心理健康问题的认识以及改善老年人获得多学科团队通常提供的服务的机会，可能会满足报告的未满足需求。
