Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration

CMHS Consumer Affairs E-News
May 5, 2004, Vol. 04-54

FREE TRAINING ADDRESSING STIGMA AND DISCRIMINATION TOWARD OLDER ADULTS

You are invited to participate in a free training session, via telephone, on Addressing Stigma and Discrimination Toward Older Adults. This training is presented by the Resource Center to Address Discrimination and Stigma (ADS Center), a program of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services.

Date: Tuesday May 11, 2004
Time: 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Eastern Time)

Older adult consumers are living in a culture that has traditionally stigmatized mental illness and advanced age. According to the Administration on Aging (AOA), 20 percent of Americans 55 or older experience a mental illness, with some evidence showing that the occurrence of these illnesses may be underreported.

Older adults tend to under-use mental health services for a variety of reasons, including social stigma, ageism, transportation problems, costs, and misconceptions about aging and mental health. Beliefs that mental health disorders and treatment are shameful, represent a personal failure, or will lead to a loss of autonomy lead many of those in need to deny having a mental health problem or to refuse treatment from a mental health provider.

Older adult consumers also face discrimination in seeking treatment , such as poor quality treatment and care and marginalization within care systems.

The speakers to discuss this topic will be:

Hikmah Gardiner, First Vice President, Older Adult Consumer Mental Health Alliance
Gardiner is a longtime community activist who has spoken about her personal struggles with mental illness and substance abuse and the civil rights and mental health advocacy movements at numerous national, statewide and local conferences and in interviews with newspapers, radio and television. Currently, she is Senior Advocate of the Mental Health and Aging Advocacy Project (MHAAP) of the Mental Health Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania. In this position, she advocates for better treatment and services for older adults with mental illnesses. The Older Adult Consumer Mental Health Alliance is a nationwide nonprofit organization dedicated to advocacy and public education on behalf of older Americans affected by mental disorders.

Tom Volkert, M.S.W., L.S.W., Project Director, Mental Health and Aging Advocacy Project
Volkert has extensive experience both as a therapist and as a community organizer. He directs the Mental Health and Aging Advocacy Project of the Mental Health Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania, which is committed to improving care for older adults who have mental illnesses. The project works to diminish the discrimination and stigma associated with mental illnesses, and it provides a forum for discussion and exchange of information about issues, services, and significant developments relevant to older adults who have mental illnesses.
www.mhaging.org

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The Center for Mental Health Services is a component of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, United States Department of Health and Human Services.