By Angela Hatton
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wkms/local-wkms-924380.mp3
Murray, KY – The only thing the new unit at Murray-Calloway County Hospital needs is patients. Twelve beds are ready with fresh linens, the staff is in place, and a new doctor has been hired to oversee the patients. Geriatric psychiatry specialist Dr. Ruiza Yee says the wing will focus on short term stays for patients suffering acute mental conditions.
"Specifically mood disorders. We also take care of those suffering from Alzheimer's-Dementia with psychiatric disturbances."
Anxiety and cognitive impairment make up the largest percentage of cases in the field. Dr. Yee says treating mental health in older patients differs slightly from treating the same conditions in younger adults.
"They will have one or maybe multiple medical conditions, so the family doctor or internist will be an integral member of our team."
Dr. Yee and the staff plan to service Calloway County and the surrounding counties, which currently have no Geriatric Psychiatry services. Yee says mental health issues in the elderly are very treatable, yet some older adults may be hesitant to seek psychiatric help.
"Because they are the generation that considers psychiatric illness as a moral turpitude kind of issue, and so there's a lot of stigma and embarrassment that they have to seek a psychiatrist. But fortunately, their children are more open about psychiatric care. And this community in particular is more open to that."
Paducah-resident Jo Ranval has spent the better part of ten years as a caregiver for first her mother-in-law, and now her parents. All three have Alzheimer's. Her grandmother died of the disease in the early 90's.
"First signs that my mother's disease was progressing was when I discovered she had nine month's worth of medication in the house, ordered. She ordered three months at a time."
Ranval says the disease has been tough for her mother in many ways.
"When she says that she has it to friends, because they are not informed and know much about Alzheimer's they're afraid to say anything to her then. She found a disconnect from some of her friends."
And Alzheimer's isn't the only health issue the Ranval family has to manage.
"My parents and my mother-in-law have had problems with depression, and anxiety. And especially with Alzheimer's."
Dr. Ruiza Yee says severe depression is not uncommon in older adults. She says if the illness goes untreated, the results could be fatal.
"Suicide attempts are more common in the younger generation, and younger population. Completed suicides are higher statistically incidents in the geriatric population."
Ranval has advocated for early diagnosis and treatment for Alzheimer's. She says her mother and father are 78 and 80 now. They still live alone, though with considerable outside assistance. Ranval doesn't believe they would be doing as well after seven years with the disease if they hadn't started medication early.
"I my age group, I think there are still a lot of people who want to deny it's happening. Y'know, because when you're parents get diagnosed with it, it's an inconvenience. So it's easier to think, oh, they're just getting old, and not look for a reason why they're having trouble remembering things."
MCCH's Geriatric Behavioral Health Unit is open. The staff expects beds to fill up soon with patients referred by nursing homes, family members, or physicians. Expansion is possible if the demand becomes too high, but right now the nurses and Dr. Yee will focus on taking care of who they can.