Aging is a natural and inevitable phenomenon. The Senior Citizen Act of Nepal, 2006, has termed geriatric population as “senior citizen” and has defined as a citizen of Nepal having completed the age of 60 years. The demographic trend of Nepal is similar to many other South East Asian countries where the number of older people is on a rise. Mental disorders and psychosocial problems in the older people are a serious public health concern throughout the world and similar is the case in context of Nepal. This mandates urgent preparation by respective stakeholders in order to address the specific psychosocial and mental health needs of this age group. The increase in the prevalence of mental health issues, limited resources, lack of awareness, increasing tends of family fragmentation, and stigma are the major concerns in geriatric mental health care. This chapter aims to provide overview of the prevalence of mental health and psychosocial problems in older people of Nepal and to discuss the government, nongovernment, and different other initiatives to counteract these problems. Also, we aim to provide the recommendations regarding effective public health and welfare approaches to prevent, treat, and manage the mental health issues among this vulnerable population in Nepal.

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Geriatric Mental Health Care in Nepal: Psychosocial Aspects

  • Pawan Sharma,
  • Suresh Thapaliya,
  • Kamal Gautam,
  • Ramesh Kandel

摘要

Aging is a natural and inevitable phenomenon. The Senior Citizen Act of Nepal, 2006, has termed geriatric population as “senior citizen” and has defined as a citizen of Nepal having completed the age of 60 years. The demographic trend of Nepal is similar to many other South East Asian countries where the number of older people is on a rise. Mental disorders and psychosocial problems in the older people are a serious public health concern throughout the world and similar is the case in context of Nepal. This mandates urgent preparation by respective stakeholders in order to address the specific psychosocial and mental health needs of this age group. The increase in the prevalence of mental health issues, limited resources, lack of awareness, increasing tends of family fragmentation, and stigma are the major concerns in geriatric mental health care. This chapter aims to provide overview of the prevalence of mental health and psychosocial problems in older people of Nepal and to discuss the government, nongovernment, and different other initiatives to counteract these problems. Also, we aim to provide the recommendations regarding effective public health and welfare approaches to prevent, treat, and manage the mental health issues among this vulnerable population in Nepal.