For older clients in need of treatment, services, referrals, or some combination thereof, you should use age-sensitive and age-specific approaches to care that respect and respond to the unique needs of older adults. A wide range of interventions are available to draw from, including pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic options. For older clients with or at risk for mild or moderate substance misuse, a brief intervention may be sufficient (e.g., education, motivational interviewing).
Why Care Is So Fundamental
- These services include meals, job training, senior centers, health promotion and disease prevention programs, benefits enrollment, caregiver support, transportation, and more.
- Advise older clients to check with their healthcare provider before starting or dramatically changing their exercise routine or diet.
- Introduce the table by describing the eight dimensions of wellness and give some examples of activities in each domain.
Older adults have impairments in drug metabolism and elimination, causing opioids to be more potent and have longer duration of action than predicted in older adults compared to younger adults 59. In fact, a recent study demonstrated that baby boomers have an increased risk of death from prescription opioid and heroin overdose compared to younger cohorts, suggesting more dramatic consequences of opioid misuse in older adults 60. Adverse drug events included slowed colonic motility, delirium, nausea/vomiting, fall/fracture, urinary retention, and opioid-related https://ecosoberhouse.com/ adverse effects 61. Routine screening and assessment will help you detect substance misuse early and accurately. The steps to guiding older clients through the continuum of care for substance misuse, including brief interventions, prevention strategies, outpatient care, inpatient rehabilitation, follow-up services, referrals, and recovery management.
- It is advised that you conduct your own investigation as to the accuracy of any information contained herein as such information, including without limitation any medical advice, is provided “as is” for informational purposes only.
- The next step is to explore the kinds of social support older adults have or would like to have.
- Substance use also can trigger or intensify medical conditions such as diabetes or cardiovascular disease, which are common among older adults (Satre, 2015).
- Action is needed now to address the needs of aging Americans with mental health conditions and prepare for substantially more Medicare beneficiaries developing depressive and anxiety related disorders.
Guide to Substance Abuse in Older Adults: Risks, Warning Signs, and Treatments
This article presents an overview of epidemiology, service use, and clinical considerations on SUD in older adults and suggests future directions. SUD prevalence is lower in older versus younger adults, as are treatment rates among those with SUD. SUDs may be difficult to recognize and treat in older adults due to the presence of other psychiatric and what is the best treatment for substance abuse for older adults general medical disorders.
Prescription Drug Abuse
- Use of illegal drugs like cocaine and heroin (and marijuana, in some states) is much lower in people 50 and up than in younger people.
- It’s essential to understand why seniors are increasingly suffering from addiction so we can better prevent it in older adults.
- The ways in which older adults are at risk for harm from alcohol misuse, including age-specific health effects as well as negative co-occurring mental and social conditions.
- Belonging to an older cohort decreased the probability of ever receiving treatment (Blanco et al., 2015).
The overall number of older adults reporting binge and heavy drinking was likely grossly underestimated when considering that the binge threshold for older adults is typically considered to be 3 drinks per day for men and 2 drinks per day for women. A study utilizing data from the 2014–2019 National Health Interview Surveys reported that the estimated prevalence of past-month binge drinking among men 65 years or older significantly increased from 12.8% in 2015 to 15.7% 15. The estimated prevalence of lifetime, past year, and past month substance use in adults aged 65 and older is described in Table 1.
Chapter 9: Resources for Treating Substance Use Disorder in Older Adults
The number of adults aged 55 and over who sought out addiction treatments increased by more than 50 percent between 2009 and 2020. This alarming statistic shows that substance use disorders do not discriminate and can affect any population, including older adults. Each individual’s journey to recovery is unique, which is why West Oaks Hospital offers a variety of substance abuse treatment options to best suit each patient’s needs and preferences. Our programs are tailored to address both the physical and psychological aspects of addiction, and are designed to provide holistic care and coping skills for the whole person.
- Family members and physicians need to educate seniors on proper medication usage and side effects so they can avoid any potential misuse down the line.
- This can happen when older adults have access to different medicines prescribed by multiple doctors.
- The 2018 NSDUH estimated that for adults ages 65 and older the prevalence of alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, and opioid (including prescription opioids) use in the past twelve months were 43 percent, 14 percent, 4.1 percent, and 1.3 percent, respectively.
- Developing plans for reengaging in treatment if they return to substance use before it becomes a full relapse to previous levels of use.