May is Older American Month
Posted by Patti on May 2nd, 2007 / 
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May is Older Americans Month.
A little history:
Older Americans Month is a program of the U.S. Department of Human Services Administration on Aging. When Older Americans Month was established in 1963, only 17 million living Americans had reached their 65th birthdays. About a third of older Americans lived in poverty and there were few programs to meet their needs. Interest in older Americans and their concerns was growing, however. In April of 1963, President John F. Kennedy’s meeting with the National Council of Senior Citizens served as a prelude to designating May as “Senior Citizens Month.”Thanks to President Jimmy Carter’s 1980 designation, what was once called Senior Citizens Month, is now called “Older Americans Month,” and has become a tradition.
Historically, Older Americans Month has been a time to acknowledge the contributions of past and current older persons to our country, in particular those who defended our country. Every President since JFK has issued a formal proclamation during or before the month of May asking that the entire nation pay tribute in some way to older persons in their communities. Older Americans Month is celebrated across the country through ceremonies, events, fairs and other such activities.
The President’s 2007 Older American Month Proclamation
May 15th, 2007 at 2:50 pm
Older Americans’ Mental Health Week is the last full week in May.
Although losses are a part of life, depression and other mental health problems are not a normal part of aging! Older adults have the same incidence of mental illness as people of other ages, but their mental health problems are more likely to go unnoticed and untreated. In fact, adults older than age 75 have the highest suicide rate of any age group.
Because they often come into daily contact with older adults, Nurse Assistants can be important professionals in the identification of possible mental health problems in older adults. Working in coordination with their supervisors, they can be key to helping older adults get help and live healthy lives.
Often, simply listening, understanding, and supporting individuals can help alleviate feelings of depression. At other times, helping to solve basic problems (like shopping or arranging for visits) can help improve an older adult’s mood. But sometimes, help from a mental health professional may be required.
These symptoms may call for consultation with a health care professional:
–Sadness that has lasted longer than two weeks
–Consistent worries about issues such as money, family and health
–Consistent trouble sleeping or concentrating
–Frequent trouble remembering things or feeling confused in familiar places
–Have more than one alcoholic drink a day or take more medication than prescribed
Treatment works the same whether someone is 18 or 80. Even better, we now know more about prevention. Research shows that eating right, getting exercise and enough sleep, exercising the mind, and staying close to friends and family all go a long way to maintaining and enhancing mental health. These are all things that Nurse Assistants an help older adults with.
In many health care settings it is the Nurse Assistant and other allied health personnel who spend the most time with the client and so are in the best position to recognize subtle changes or observe and report new or unusual behaviors, attitudes and conversations.
For more information, see http://www.owl-national.org
Thank you!