Sivakumar Palanimuthu Thangaraju, Mukku Shiva Shanker Reddy, Kar Nilamadhab, Manjunatha Narayana, Phutane Vivek Haridas, Sinha Preeti, Kumar Channaveerachari Naveen, Math Suresh Bada
Dept. of Psychiatry, Geriatric Clinic and Services, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India.
Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, Wolverhampton, England, United Kingdom.
Indian J Psychol Med. 2020 Oct 16;42(5 Suppl):41S-46S. doi: 10.1177/0253717620958380. eCollection 2020 Oct.
Psychiatric illnesses are an important contributor of morbidity and mortality in older adults. There is increase in older adults with psychiatric disorders paralleling their growth in absolute numbers. This leads to challenges in mental health care and service delivery. Several barriers that exists in our community hinder older adults from receiving mental health care. Additionally, lack of adequate human resources in geriatric mental health care compounds the problem. Telemedicine, though not new in other fields of medicine, is relatively new in the practice of psychiatry in India. This is probably due to lack of clear guidelines and regulations regarding the same in India. There is a recent increase in teleconsultations in India similar to other developed countries due to ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The recent telepsychiatry operational guidelines have made telepsychiatry a legitimate and official practice in India. Challenges specific to older adults in the form of low digital literacy, sensory issues, and cognitive impairment can be overcome by adopting telepsychiatry services in coming years. Concerns related to security and safety of telepsychiatry require further evaluation.
精神疾病是老年人发病和死亡的重要原因。患有精神疾病的老年人数量随着其绝对数量的增长而增加。这给精神卫生保健和服务提供带来了挑战。我们社区存在的一些障碍阻碍了老年人获得精神卫生保健。此外，老年精神卫生保健方面缺乏足够的人力资源使问题更加严重。远程医疗在其他医学领域虽不新鲜，但在印度精神病学实践中相对较新。这可能是由于印度缺乏关于此的明确指导方针和法规。由于持续的新冠疫情，印度近期的远程会诊有所增加，与其他发达国家类似。最近的远程精神病学操作指南使远程精神病学在印度成为一种合法的官方实践。未来几年通过采用远程精神病学服务，可以克服老年人特有的低数字素养、感官问题和认知障碍等挑战。与远程精神病学的安全相关的问题需要进一步评估。
