Regular Research ArticlesCorrelates of Perceived Need for and Use of Mental Health Services by Older Adults in the Collaborative Psychiatric Epidemiology Surveys
Section snippets
Sample
The Collaborative Psychiatric Epidemiologic Surveys (CPES)28 comprised three surveys conducted between 2001 and 2003: the National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R, N = 9,282), the National Survey of American Life (NSAL, N = 6,082), and the National Latino and Asian American Study (NLAAS, N = 4,649). The three surveys are representative of the U.S. adult population and they empolyed very similar methodologies, including using trained lay interviewers to conduct interviews primarily in
RESULTS
In terms of the weighted demographic makeup of our sample, 41.1% were 55–64 years of age, 32.4% were 65–74 years, and 26.5% were 75 years and older. The majority of individuals were female (56.8%) and non-Hispanic white (80.8%). In addition, 9.7% were black, 5.3% were Hispanic, 2.6% were Asian, and 1.5% reported an “other” race/ethnicity. With respect to education, 26.3% had less than 12 years, 33.2% had 12 years, 21.3% had 13–15 years, and 19.2% had 16 years or more. The majority of
DISCUSSION
This study examined perceived need for mental health services using a large, representative sample of Americans aged 55 years and older. Fortunately, most of the individuals in this study who perceived the need for help sought it; that is, 53% of older adults with past-year mood, anxiety, or substance-related disorders perceived the need for professional help and 41% sought it. On the other hand, these data also demonstrate that approximately half of the older individuals with a clear objective
References (46)
- et al.
Caring for mental illness in the United States: a focus on older adults
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry
(2003) Improving system of care for older adults with mental illness in the United States. Findings and recommendations for the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry
(2003)- et al.
Mental health services use: Baltimore Epidemiologic Catchment Area Follow-up
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry
(2009) - et al.
Evidence-based practices in geriatric mental health care: an overview of systematic reviews and meta-analyses
Psychiatr Clin North Am
(2003) - et al.
Unmet needs for services for older adults with mental illness: comparison of views of different stakeholder groups
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry
(2007) - et al.
Integration of mental health services into primary care overcomes ethnic disparities in access to mental health services between black and white elderly
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry
(2007) - et al.
A comparison of older and younger adults' help-seeking attitudes and treatment beliefs concerning mental health problems
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry
(2008) - et al.
Factors associated with health care utilization by the elderly in a public health care system
Health Policy
(2006) - et al.
Epidemiology of social phobia in later life
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry
(2007) - et al.
Building blocks of successful aging: a focus group study of older adults' perceived contributors to successful aging
Am J Geriatr Psychiatry
(2007)
Patterns and predictors of mental health service use and mental illness among older and younger adults in the United States
Psychol Serv
Population Projections for Canada, Provinces and Territories, 2005–2031. Catalogue 91–520
Population Projections of the United States by Age, Sex, Race, and Hispanic Origin: 1995 to 2050
Consensus statement on the upcoming crisis in geriatric mental health: research agenda for the next 2 decades
Arch Gen Psychiatry
Commentary on evidence-based psychological treatments for older adults
Psychol Aging
National health surveys and the behavioral model of health services use
Med Care
Influence of age and gender on advice given to depressed people
J Ment Health Aging
Geriatric mental health policy: impact on service delivery and directions for effecting change
Prof Psychol Res Pract
Preferences of therapists-in-training for client characteristics
Psychother Theor Res Pract Train
Quality improvement research on late life depression in primary care
Med Care
Utilization of mental health care services among older adults with depression
J Clin Psychol
Age differences in mental health literacy
BMC Public Health
Intrinsic and extrinsic barriers to mental health care among community-dwelling younger and older adults
Aging Ment Health
Cited by (100)
Using the Patient Health Questionnaire-2 to improve depression screening in head and neck cancer patients
2023, American Journal of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Medicine and SurgeryCentering Culture in Mental Health: Differences in Diagnosis, Treatment, and Access to Care Among Older People of Color
2022, American Journal of Geriatric PsychiatryRisk Prediction Models for Depression in Community-Dwelling Older Adults
2022, American Journal of Geriatric PsychiatryCitation Excerpt :Providing information on depression risk in an accessible way may raise awareness among clinicians and individuals.47 Depressed older adults often hold stigmatizing beliefs and do not recognize the need for help, or have negative views about treatment and avoid mental health care.48 The performance of Manto RPMs is superior to that of DRAT-up, our earlier model for prediction of late-life depression.
Anxiety Disorders in Late Life: Considerations for Assessment and Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment
2022, Cognitive and Behavioral PracticeCitation Excerpt :Jorm (2000) defined mental health literacy as “knowledge and beliefs about mental disorders which aid their recognition, management or prevention” (p. 396). Furthermore, older adults tend to have lower rates of mental health treatment seeking relative to younger age groups (Mackenzie et al., 2010). Older adults presenting for treatment of anxiety disorder may possess less knowledge of CBT and be less aware that their concerns are highly treatable within this framework.
This work was supported by the University of Manitoba University Research grants Program (to CSM), by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research New Investigator Award 152348 (to JS), and by a graduate fellowship from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) (to JP). The Collaborative Psychiatric Epidemiologic Surveys (CPES) are funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).