Older Arkansans face mental health challenges during COVID 19 / Public News Service

As Mental Health Awareness Month draws to a close, Arkansas health officials are reminding seniors of available resources, as the social isolation of the pandemic has hit them especially hard.

According to a study, one in four seniors nationally reported anxiety and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Tammy Alexander, a licensed psychologist and assistant director of the Arkansas Department of Social Services, Division of Aging, Adult, and Behavioral Health Services, said social distancing has cut off many seniors from support networks, which exacerbated mental health problems.

“That connection just helps regulate our mental health,” Alexander explained. “Having that connection and being involved and feeling supported by our friends and family. Such an in-person connection has been cut during COVID, that I think most people have had negative impacts.”

The state’s Department of Human Services (DHS) supports 12 community mental health centers capable of serving the uninsured or underinsured. For people without insurance who need “light” mental health counseling services, DHS supports therapy counseling in all 75 counties of the state.

Dr. Rhonda Randall, executive vice president and chief medical officer of employer and individual UnitedHealthcare, agreed that it was important to look for signs of mental health issues in loved ones. It can mean an unusual disinterest in activities they usually enjoy, a change in sleep patterns, or mention feelings of hopelessness. She added that it is important for people to seek help from a trusted medical professional.

“Mental health is part of our health,” Randall said. “It’s a conversation you should have with your primary care physician when you go for your annual medical checkups, especially if you already have an established relationship. And that can be a really good starting point, and also put it into context. your other medical conditions.”

According to the United Health Foundation’s 2021 US Health Rankings report, 23.5% of Arkansans said they had been told by a doctor that they had a depressive disorder.

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The busy summer travel season begins this weekend, and a few tips can help ensure that hitting the road is as painless as possible.

Matthew Conde, director of public affairs for AAA Idaho, said people should refresh their emergency kits with flares, first aid kits and flashlights, and should think of less conventional items.

“Bring a tarp,” suggested Condé. “That way you have some temporary shade if you’re waiting somewhere by the side of the road, maybe waiting for help. And, of course, a blanket or a towel or something you can use to protect you from hot asphalt or road debris if you have to kneel down to change a tire or check tire pressure or things like that.”

Condé recommended people bring a gallon of water, which can serve multiple purposes. It can help cool people and pets and also help with overheating radiators. He advised people to also bring extra spare clothes in case of unexpected delays, or even spontaneous fun, like a detour to swim in a nearby lake.

Unfortunately, one of the biggest obstacles to summer travel this year is rising gas prices. Conde pointed out that AAA research found that three-quarters of people will change their driving habits when gas prices hit five dollars a gallon.

“But we also learned that 50% of people who have already booked a summer vacation won’t change it, no matter what gas prices do,” Conde reported.

Condé stressed that people should drive carefully during the summer months.

“We call them the 100 deadliest days, from Memorial Day to Labor Day,” Conde noted. “Because obviously there are so many more people driving all the time, day and night. The road conditions are actually good and of course that means people are starting to drive faster.

Condé added that travel demand will be higher this year and people should probably budget 20-30% more for travel than last year.

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The National Institutes of Health has launched a nationwide research project to better understand how to prevent and treat what has come to be called “long” COVID, as well as to determine who is at risk.

The COVID-19 virus has affected millions of Americans, but most people have recovered from the disease – at least initially. However, doctors say thousands of people who thought they were done are later developing “long” COVID, weeks or even months after the first symptoms have disappeared. “Long haulers,” as they are called, often suffer from heart and lung problems, fatigue, and cognitive issues such as “brain fog,” according to NIH neurologist Dr. Walter Koroshetz, director of the Institute. National Board of Neurological Disorders and Stroke and a study co-director.

“We really don’t understand why this is happening,” he said. “So the RECOVER initiative – Research COVID to Enhance Recovery – is trying to understand why this is happening and with that understanding to develop treatments that can help these people.”

The University of Utah is one of more than 80 sites in 30 states that are part of the study. People of all races, ethnicities, genders, ages and locations are needed. To volunteer, look online at RecoverCOVID.org.

One of the main goals of the study, Koroshetz said, is to understand why some people have long-term symptoms and others don’t.

“The largest group is people who are severely infected with a very recent infection,” he said. “We want to study how people recover after COVID so we can compare the recovery process and people who do a good job of recovering, versus those who do a bad job and end up with persistent symptoms.”

Koroshetz said researchers know the importance of bringing a wide variety of people to share their experiences.

“The real heroes are the subjects who enroll in this study,” he said. “People who find it difficult to register, I think, because they want to understand what is wrong with them and they want to contribute to knowledge. We also need people who do it for reasons purely altruistic, people who have no harm.”

He said volunteers can expect a phone call from a study representative to gather basic demographic information, ask questions about your experience with COVID-19 and why you want to be part of the study. .

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At the start of the pandemic, the federal government waived some certification requirements for nurse aides to address healthcare worker shortages. As these waivers come to an end, the federal government is allowing New York and other states to “grandpa” these nurse aides without having met pre-pandemic requirements.

The initial training waiver was intended to give care home staff the flexibility to deal with the pandemic, but Richard Mollot, executive director of the Long Term Care Community Coalition, said it did not fix the problem underlying industry burnout.

“Federal studies, our studies, have shown that they are understaffed,” he said, “and they exploit the workforce and they rely on a workforce that is going to be constantly renewed. “.

Mollot said a return to mandatory training hours would help both staff and residents. He argued that nursing homes and long-term care facilities need to invest in appropriate staffing levels and fair compensation for their workforce. Under the grandfathering process, New York gives credit for nearly half of a nursing assistant’s required training hours if they worked for 30 days or 150 hours.

In April, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced that it would gradually reinstate training requirements and that new nurses will have to meet pre-pandemic requirements. The federal agency acknowledged that the waiver of requirements gave nursing homes flexibility, but it also led to poor resident care in some cases.

Eric Carlson, managing attorney for the Justice in Aging group, said formal training helps caregivers learn a range of skills to better care for residents.

“It’s unfair and inaccurate to simply claim that caregivers just need to put food in front of people and help them wash up a bit,” he said. “It’s much, much more than that, and nursing facility residents need high-quality care.”

A bill currently in Congress would extend the training exemption and provide a pathway to use work hours to count toward training requirements. Its proponents say easing training standards would help attract more people into the health care industry. It was passed by neither the House nor the Senate.

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