269943 Older adult mental health peer specialists

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Cynthia Zubritsky, PhD , Center for Mental Health Policy and Services Research, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
Karen Fortuna, MSW , Center for Mental Health Policy and Services Research, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
Bridget Keogh, BS , Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA
It is anticipated that the number of individuals older than 65 years old with a psychiatric disorder in the United States will increase drastically in the next 20 years, expanding the need for mental health service for older adults dramatically. Pennsylvania, which has the highest rate of certified mental health peer specialists, is preparing for the influx of older adults into aging and mental health programs by developing a specialized workforce of state-certified Peer Specialists to work with older adults with mental health disorders. The Older Adult Mental Health Peer Specialist Program was developed by the Pennsylvania Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse and the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Mental Health Policy and Services Research. This presentation describes how Pennsylvania created a Medicaid reimbursable workforce of Peer Specialists who are being trained to provide support, recovery, and health management services to older adults. The current initiative has trained over 100 peer specialists to work specifically with persons 55 and older. A train-the-trainer program has been developed and implemented and internships are being developed in behavioral health and primary health settings.

Learning Areas:
Program planning
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
At the end of this session participants will: 1. understand the history of mental health Peer Specialists in Pennsylvania and the clinical outcomes associated with Peer Specialist services for older adults; 2. be able to identify the key elements necessary to develop a statewide Older Adult Peer Specialist program; and 3. be able to identify the key components of Peer Specialist curriculum development for older adults.

Keywords: Aging, Mental Health Services

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: As the Director of Integrated Primary Care and Behavioral Health Initiatives for the Center for Mental Health Policy and Services Research, I have extensive experience in management and organizational issues in behavioral healthcare systems, including integrated systems design, outcome measurement, quality assurance measurement, process evaluation and cultural measures for behavioral health and aging systems. I am a senior fellow at the Penn-MARCH Institute, the Leonard Davis Institute and the University of Pennsylvania Institute on Aging.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 4369.0: Mental health interventions: Dissemination, training, engagement and outcomes