Social interventions to manage mental disorders of the elderly in long-term care

Abstract

Mental disorders have a high prevalence among nursing home residents. Behaviour disorders range from social withdrawal which stems from depression to disruptive behaviour associated with the dementias, such as attention-seeking behaviour and inappropriate vocalising. In the main, management of these disorders has been through pharmacological intervention. However, enough studies have accumulated which demonstrate an association between the social environment and psychological well-being to suggest that further trials of social interventions are warranted.