Survey of aged psychiatry services' support of older Australians with very severe, persistent behavioural symptoms of dementia.

Objective: To map the provision of community, acute, non-acute and residential care-based state-funded mental health services to older people with severe, persistent behavioural symptoms of dementia.

Methods: An electronic survey was completed in 2015 by senior representatives of aged persons' mental health services across Australia's six states.

Results: Jurisdictions varied widely in the number, geographic spread and make-up of aged persons' mental health community teams when adjusted for aged population; their number of acute and non-acute beds, and especially in the provision of specialist residential beds or partnerships with non-government providers.

Sleep and aging: examining the effect of psychological symptoms and risk of sleep-disordered breathing.

Controversy exists as to whether self-reported sleep quality declines with age, despite changes in sleep being accepted as part of normal aging. This study sought to investigate age-related differences in self-reported sleep quality, after controlling for conditions that are common with age, such as psychological symptoms and increased risk of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB). The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) was administered to a sample of 582 community adults (aged 18-89 years), and the association between age and 3 factors of the PSQI (sleep efficiency, perceived sleep quality, and daily disturbance), and global scores, was examined controlling for depression, anxiety, stress, gender, and SDB risk.

Reclaiming the best of the biopsychosocial model of mental health care and 'recovery' for older people through a 'person-centred' approach.

Aim: The 'biopsychosocial', 'person-centred care' (PCC) and 'recovery' models of care can be seen as distinct and competing paradigms. This paper proposes an integration of these valuable perspectives and suggestions for effective implementation in health services for the elderly.

Method: An overview of PCC and recovery models, and their application for older people with mental health problems, is provided.

A randomized trial of early psychiatric intervention in residential care: impact on health outcomes.

Background: The prevalence of psychological and behavioral disturbances among older adults living in residential care facilities is high, and it has been shown previously that people with such symptoms have poorer health outcomes. This study was designed to assess the efficacy of an early psychiatric intervention on the 12-month health outcomes of older adults admitted to residential care facilities in Perth, Western Australia. We hypothesized that subjects in the intervention group would have better mental and physical health outcomes than controls.