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Care home psychiatry - need for urgent action
- Sudip Sikdar (14 November 2008)
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Sudip Sikdar, consulatnt in old age psychiatry Waterloo Day hospital, Park Road, waterloo, Liverpool
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Dear Editor I read Donald et al's commentary with interest as there is a similar need to find appropriate models of providing psychogeriatric liaison service in care homes in the UK urgently. The prevalence of dementia, depression and delirium are extremely high in care settings(often nearly 75%). Much of this morbidity is unrecognized and poorly managed by primary care. Old Age psychiatrists commonly provide a consultative model of care at the request of general practitioners but the patients are often treated inappropriately before requests are made and much criticism of current practice of treating behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia with antipsychotics has been directed by the parliament(All party parliamentary group on dementia, 2008). The knowledge, attitude and manpower in most care settings are grossly inadequate.The new National Dementia Strategy would propose certain models of care in this setting, one of which may be establishing a psychogeriatric care home liaision service, much like the now successful general hospital liaison service in many parts of the country. All this would require local commissioners to focus their energy and provide fund to set up these services. Care home psychiatry too nneds to be "in from the cold". Conflict of Interest:None declared |
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