WHY IS MULTIDISCIPLINARY / INTERDISCIPLINARY COLLABORATION SO IMPORTANT IN WORKING WITH OLDER ADULTS?
American Psychological Association
Table of Contents
Why Practitioners Need Information
- As previously noted, many older adults seeking
psychological services have concurrent medical problems. Some have more
than one mental disorder or coexisting social problems. Initial and ongoing
collaboration with other health care professionals and family members is
critical for the accurate assessment and treatment of older adults. The
most tightly integrated form of collaboration is an interdisciplinary treatment
team
which sets team goals, develops joint treatment plans, and addresses team process and content issues. - In outpatient settings, collaboration with the client's primary health care provider may be critical to understanding whether initial psychological symptoms and acute changes in the client's mental status have a medical component. For older clients in need of psychotropic medication, a good working relationship with a psychiatrist may increase the likelihood that psychological symptoms improve and that medication side effects are addressed. Social workers can play a vital role in assuring that the older client and family are knowledgeable of financial entitlements and community resources that may improve the quality of life.
- In nursing homes or in adult homes/board and care facilities, collaboration with resident staff and those who provide onsite health care services will expand the psychologist's understanding of the older client's day-to-day functioning, as well as provide opportunities to address environmental issues that may adversely affect the mental and social well-being of the older resident.
