Full Course Description
Certificate Course in Psychotherapy for Aging Clients:
Comprehensive tools for mental health symptoms, cognitive decline,
end of life issues, and more
In this comprehensive certificate course, you’ll get all the skills you need to effectively navigate all aspects of senior mental health care. You’ll discover the critical adaptations you can make to your practice to better meet the needs of older adults. You’ll also learn how to navigate cognitive changes, end-of-life of life, and difficult family relationships. After completing this program, you’ll have receive a certificate from The Center for Mental Health and Aging, indicating your expertise in providing senior mental health care.
Program Information
Objectives
- Demonstrate 3 ways that ageism impacts older adults’ physical and mental health.
- Illustrate intersecting minority identities among older adults to promote equitable mental health care
- Review rates of sexual activity and sexually transmitted inflections among older adults.
- Identify 3 common life transitions for older adults and ways in which these life transitions impact mental health
- Examine the health consequences of social isolation and loneliness among older adults and provide recommendations for enhancing connection and belonging.
- Differentiate mild cognitive impairment and dementia and the most common forms of dementia, including Alzheimer’s Disease
- Apply tools for the clinical assessment of cognitive impairment including cognitive screeners, mood screeners, functional assessment, and caregiver/collateral assessment.
- Summarize stages of caregiving and older family conflicts in each stage
- Describe ethical dilemmas and considerations that can arise with older adult care
- List 5 evidence-based strategies for optimizing well-being and longevity in older adulthood
- Describe anxiety and depression symptoms unique to older adults
- Summarize evidence-based treatments for older adults related to depression, anxiety, and insomnia
- Demonstrate 3 ways in which older adults may be more vulnerable to post-traumatic stress reactions.
- Apply a tool for assessing suicide risk among older adults in order to guide intervention
- Examine 3 unique concerns related to substance use disorders for older adults
- Utilize a psychotherapy modality for providing end of life psychotherapy to facilitate cognitive and emotional processing of dying.
- Differentiate desire to hasten death from suicidality among people living with terminal illness.
- Describe Prolonged Grief Disorder Diagnosis, assessment, and evidence-based treatments
Outline
Part 1: Foundations of Adult Development
Module 1: Aging, Ageism & The Importance of Belonging
- The demographics of aging
- The impact of ageism and ableism on health and well-being
- Clinical implications of ageism
- Strategies to challenge ageism in older adult mental health care
- Intersecting identities among older adults
- Being an ally to transgender older adults
- Practicing cultural humility in working with older adults
- Resilience factors among minoritized older adults
Module 2: Relationships
- Social aspects of adult development
- Risks of loneliness and isolation among older adults
- The benefits of social connection and belonging in older adulthood
- Rates of sexual activity among adults 65 and older
- The benefits of intimacy among older adults
- Statistics regarding sexually transmitted inflections among older adults
- Therapists’ attitudes about sexuality and aging among older adults
- Guidance for Professionals on having conversations about sex with older clients
- Sexual health in the context of medical conditions
- Limitations of the research and potential risks
Module 3: Common Life Issues and Transitions for Older Adults
- Common transitions in older adulthood
- Stages of retirement and its impact on mental health
- Rates of older adults living with chronic health conditions
- Impact of chronic health conditions on mental health
- Common transitions in living environments
- Differentiating loneliness and isolation
- Brief screening tools to identify loneliness and isolation in older adults
- Age-specific referral sources and barriers to using resources
Part 2: Cognitive Changes and Ethical Considerations
Module 4: Cognition and Aging
- Differentiating typical and a-typical age-related changes in the brain
- Treatable causes of cognitive impairment
- Risk factors for dementia disorders
- Differentiating, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease
- Differentiating Depression, Delirium and Dementia
- Pathways for referrals for people with cognitive disorders in therapy
- Therapist’s role in working with individuals and families with dementia
- Communication strategies for people with dementia
Module 5: Caregiver Family Therapy: Families with Dementia and Life-Altering Medical Conditions
- Role changes in the older families
- Ambiguous loss when caring for a loved one with dementia
- The stages of caregiving and family conflicts in each stage
- Caregiving dilemmas in negotiating safety with autonomy
- Caregiver family therapy with families with dementia
Module 6: Ethical Principles and Common Ethical Dilemmas
- Ethical principles, dilemmas and considerations in older adult care
- Strategies to prevent and resolve ethical dilemmas
- Common types of elder abuse
- Strategies to attend to elder abuse
Part 3: Mental Health and Older Adults
Module 7: Evidence-Based Recommendations for Optimal Aging
- The five evidence-based strategies for optimizing well-being in older adulthood
- The benefits of spirituality on health and well-being
- The cognitive health benefits of nature
- Helping clients cultivate a sense of meaning and purpose in life
- Limitations of the research and potential risks
Module 8: Anxiety Disorders and Older Adults
- Anxiety disorders among older adults
- Recognizing and assessing anxiety symptoms
- Incorporating medical information and medications into diagnostic assessment
- Evidence-based treatments for anxiety in older adulthood
Module 9: Depression and Older Adults
- Depression in later life
- Standardized assessment tools for assessing depression in older adults
- Evidence-based treatments for depression in older adulthood
Module 10: Insomnia and Older Adults
- Rates and risk factors for insomnia in older adults
- Assessment tools for assessing insomnia in older adults
- Evidence-based treatments for insomnia in older adulthood
Module 11: Trauma and Older Adults, including Post Traumatic Growth
- Age-related factors associated with PTSD
- The impact of PTSD in older adulthood related to physical and cognitive health.
- Assessment tools for PTSD in older adults
- Evidence-based treatment for PTSD in older adults
- How to make recommendations within a trauma-informed framework
- Post-Traumatic Growth and resilience related to older adults
Module 12: Suicide and Older Adults
- Suicide rates among older adults
- Older adult suicide risk compared to younger adults
- Tools to assess suicide risk in older adults
Module 13: Substance Use and Older Adults
- Unique considerations related to substance use disorders for older adults
- Rates and risk factors for substance use
- Assessment tools for substance use older adults
- Substance use treatment recommendations
Part 4: End of Life Psychotherapy & Grief
Module 14: End of life psychotherapy
- Psychotherapy models for providing end of life psychotherapy
- Strategies to communicate with older adults about end of life care and goals of care
- Supports available for people nearing end of life
- Medical Aid in Dying and Right to Die
- How to differentiate medical aid in dying from suicide
Module 15: Grief
- Types of grief
- Diagnosis, assessment, and evidence-based treatments
- Grieving our own patients
Target Audience
- Counselors
- Social Workers
- Psychologists
- Psychotherapists
- Therapists
- Marriage & Family Therapists
- Addiction Counselors
- Case Managers
- Physicians
- Nurses
- Other Mental Health Professionals
Copyright :
07/15/2024