This article examines older patient preferences for psychological services, including the types of services they would be interested in and who should provide them. Seventy-nine percent of the sample surveyed said they would use any of the psychological services which were presented to them. Seventy-two percent preferred to talk to their primary care provider, and 46% of the sample indicated that they would also speak with a mental health worker or nurse about their problems. Few older people said they would attend group psychotherapy, but 69% said they would attend psychoeducational classes. Implications: Our findings suggest that older adults would be amenable to psychosocial services, particularly individual services and psychoeducational programming.
This article examines older patient preferences for psychological services, including the types of services they would be interested in and who should provide them. Seventy-nine percent of the sample surveyed said they would use any of the psychological services which were presented to them. Seventy-two percent preferred to talk to their primary care provider, and 46% of the sample indicated that they would also speak with a mental health worker or nurse about their problems. Few older people said they would attend group psychotherapy, but 69% said they would attend psychoeducational classes. Implications: Our findings suggest that older adults would be amenable to psychosocial services, particularly individual services and psychoeducational programming.
Subject terms:
mental health problems, older people, psychiatric social work, psychiatry, primary care, psychotherapy, social care provision, statistical methods, approved social workers, community mental health nurses;