Palo Alto University Addresses Mental Health Needs of Senior Living Communities While Providing Training Opportunities for Beginning Clinicians

Palo Alto, CA – In response to the impact COVID-19 is having on the mental health of individuals in aging communities, a team of psychologists and counselors at Palo Alto University (PAU) developed a tele-mental health outreach program that partners with long-term care agencies to help meet the needs of senior living communities while providing a unique training opportunity for beginning clinicians.  

In an article published this month (July 2022) in Gerontology & Geriatrics Education, the PAU team (Donna S. Sheperis, PhD, Rowena Gomez, PhD, Cristen Wathen, PhD, Megan Frank, and Lisa M Brown, PhD) outlines a partnership model between long-term care assisted living organizations and the clinical training program at Palo Alto University to meet community and educational needs of older residents. 

“While the pandemic certainly created the challenge, it also offered an opportunity to engage in virtual and telehealth models to reach a community that is not ordinarily served,” says lead author Donna Sheperis, a counseling professor and board certified tele-mental health professional at Palo Alto University. 

“The sense of isolation and loneliness, which is related to depression and cognitive decline in aging adults, meant that this population struggled more than others,” added Dr. Sheperis. “The ability to meet a community need while training mental health clinicians is exciting.”  

The article describes how Palo Alto University a designated Age Friendly University, established partnerships with local assisted living centers and highlights the challenges of implementing psychoeducation programs, issues in providing teletherapy, and the benefits derived from all parties who were involved in the partnership.  The team developed the following list of key considerations that may be helpful to programs looking to implement a tele-mental health outreach and psychoeducation program:

• Consider the existing level of care of the community. Mental health needs will differ based on level of care (e.g., loneliness is seen more in independent living rather than in more advanced levels of care.)
• Have adequate tech support. Technological challenges can get in the way of opportunities to provide therapy services.
• Engage student clinicians in training for older adult care as well as in the delivery of tele-mental health.
• Don’t underestimate the amount of time you will need to work with program administrators. We found that if the administration was not on board, the clientele did not always get services.
• Be flexible with the programming you offer based on the community. This is another great time to consult with administration as the administrator’s expectations may not match what you discover in the needs assessment.
• Be flexible about offerings to different agencies. We found that resident needs varied by facility.
• Involve the community resident board, if the community has one, in the communication process. Remember that their expectations may or may not reflect the broader community and may or may not be inclusive of all voices.
• Address the need for stigma reduction. Older persons under identify mental health concerns due to stigma (World Health Organization, 2020).
• Be aware of language needs and be ready to provide written materials and services in languages other than English.

Background

COVID-19 has touched most populations worldwide, but it has negatively affected some people more than others. Specifically, older adults are more at risk of negative physical health outcomes, including higher mortality rates than younger age groups (World Health Organization, 2021). This is due in part to age-related decreases in immunity and increases in underlying medical conditions (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020; Jordan, Adab, & Cheng, 2020; Onder, Rezza, & Brusaferro, 2020). Because older adults are advised to isolate more than other age groups due to these physical risks, they are also at increased risk for higher rates and levels of emotional and psychological distress. These adverse psychological outcomes are greater among older adults compared to younger adults, including those who have recovered from COVID-19 (Cai et al., 2020). Some of those psychological outcomes include isolation and loneliness.

 

About Palo Alto University

Palo Alto University (PAU), a private, non-profit university located in the heart of Northern California’s Silicon Valley, is dedicated to addressing pressing and emerging issues in the fields of psychology and counseling that meet the needs of today’s diverse society. PAU offers undergraduate and graduate programs that are led by faculty who make significant contributions to in their field. Online, hybrid and residential program options are available. PAU was founded in 1975 as the Pacific Graduate School of Psychology and re-incorporated as Palo Alto University in August 2009. PAU is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC).  PAU’s doctoral programs are accredited by the American Psychological Association (APA) and its master’s in counseling programs by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling & Related Educational Programs (CACREP).