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Advances in Psychiatry pp 305–313Cite as

Challenges for Old Age Psychiatry

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Abstract

The increase of life expectancy worldwide leads to a demographic challenge. The aim to reach old age in good mental and physical health comes closer, when prevention throughout the life course takes place and the health-care structures provide integrative and person-centred care and cure. According to the available evidence, education, physical activity, social integration, low or adequately treated cardiovascular risk factors and more reduce the risk for, e.g. dementia or depression, the most frequent mental disorders in late life. The article focuses on four relevant areas: the role of psychiatry in dementia care, the problems of suicide and assisted suicide (prevention), the situation in nursing homes and hospitals and finally, the development of service structures and reflects recent developments in research and policy.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Section of Old Age Psychiatry of the World Psychiatric Association, Basel, Switzerland

    Gabriela Stoppe & Carlos Augusto de Mendonça Lima

  2. Section of Old Age Psychiatry of the European Psychiatric Association, Lausanne, Switzerland

    Gabriela Stoppe & Carlos Augusto de Mendonça Lima

  3. Old Age Psychiatry, Medical Faculty, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland

    Gabriela Stoppe

  4. MentAge Ltd., Basel, Switzerland

    Gabriela Stoppe

  5. Les Toises – Centre de psychiatrie et psychothérapie, Lausanne, Switzerland

    Carlos Augusto de Mendonça Lima

Authors
  1. Gabriela Stoppe
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  2. Carlos Augusto de Mendonça Lima
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Gabriela Stoppe .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. The Medical Centre, Nuneaton, United Kingdom

    Afzal Javed

  2. Division of Neuroscience Medicine, Aristotle University, Division of Neuroscience Medicine, Thessaloniki, Greece

    Kostas N. Fountoulakis

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Stoppe, G., de Mendonça Lima, C.A. (2019). Challenges for Old Age Psychiatry. In: Javed, A., Fountoulakis, K. (eds) Advances in Psychiatry. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-70554-5_18

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-70554-5_18

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-70553-8

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-70554-5

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