Clinical: Alcohol and Prescription Drug Use in Older Adulthood

Alcohol and Prescription Drug Use in Older Adulthood

Ferguson, M. (2015). Social Work Helper. Retrieved from: http://www.socialworkhelper.com/2015/01/16/alcohol-prescription-drug-use-older-adulthood/

Substance abuse, specifically alcohol and prescription drug use, is one of the most rapidly growing healthcare problem for older adults, 60 years of age and older in Canada and the United States. Researchers project a 3-fold increase in substance abuse in adults aged 50 and older by 2020.

Consequently, an estimated 5 million older adults will require treatment for substance abuse problems in the near future. Researchers are only beginning to recognize the prevalence of substance abuse among people age 60 years of age and older as alcohol and prescription drug use in older adults was seldom discussed until recently.

Substance use and misuse place older adults at risk for a variety of possible clinical dangers, contributing to increased use of healthcare resources and a need for age-specific interventions with the increased proportion of older adults living in North American society. Presently, the misuse of prescription and over-the-counter medications is recognized as a problem.

However, baby boomers are expected to have had more contact with illicit substances (ie. marijuana, hashish, cocaine (including crack), inhalants, hallucinogens, heroin and prescription-type drugs used non-medically) than past and present cohorts of older adults. Illicit drugs may also be increasing in a small percentage of older adults.

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported that illicit drug use by adults 55 to 59 has increased from 1.9% in 2002 to 5.0% in 2008, which depicts the potential for growth in illicit drug use in the baby boomer cohort. However, illicit drug use in older adults is typically linked to individuals who are lifelong drug users.

In addition, approximately 15% of individuals 65 years of age and older living in the community are at risk for alcohol abuse or dependence and 50% of individuals living in personal care homes drink moderately or are dependent on alcohol. However, only 90% of individuals who are at risk for alcohol abuse or dependence do not receive alcohol treatment services.

Therefore substance abuse services in the future will need to anticipate and acknowledge problems with the use and misuse of both licit and illicit substances in older adulthood. However, due to insufficient knowledge, limited research data, and limited and rushed healthcare visits and appointments, healthcare providers often overlook substance abuse and misuse among older adults. Therefore, despite the number of older adults experiencing problems related to substance use, the situation remains underestimated, underidentified, underdiagnosed and undertreated.

The reasons for the inability to acknowledge substance use problems in older adults are due to many factors. First, healthcare providers often overlook substance abuse and misuse among older individuals, as their symptoms are often mistaken for depression, dementia and health problems common to old age such as falling, infections or digestive difficulties.

Second, older adults may also hide their substance use and are less likely to seek help for their problems with substance use. Third, many family members of older adults with substance use, particularly adult children, are often embarrassed of their family members’ problems which often results in their inability to seek treatment.

As a result, thousands of older adults who need treatment never go, and the number of substance abusers among older adults continue to rise. Healthcare professionals must acknowledge that older adults’ struggles with substance abuse are becoming a prevalent issue and the stigma associated with these issues must be addressed as well.

Healthcare professionals must acknowledge that older adults’ struggles with substance abuse are becoming a prevalent issue and the stigma associated with these issues must be addressed as well. Mental health practitioners should also receive specific training and education to develop sensitivity towards these issues.

Global: IFSW Europe Newsletter

                      

IFSW (Dec. 2014). Retrieved from: http://cdn.ifsw.org/assets/ifsw_12438-2.pdf

Global: Social Work with the Wastepickers of Dhaka in Bangladesh

A teacher and students at Grambangla School

Social Work with the Wastepickers of Dhaka

Dr Rory Truell, IFSW Secretary-General was invited by the  Association of Social Workers Bangladesh to visit a number of their projects. This is his account of their work with the Wastepickers of Dhaka

IFSW (2015). Retrieved from: http://ifsw.org/news/social-work-with-the-wastepickers-of-dhaka/

Tags

• Asia-pacific
• Bangladesh

A small amount of funding can go along way in the right hands. Social workers from the Association of Social Workers Bangladesh accessed funds from the Dutch Trade Union Movement to start and run Grambangla School for the children of the Wastepickers of Dhaka. The school is contributing to transforming lives but the social workers actions go much further.

The Wastepickers are the poorest of the poor, a people without recognition. People who work in the high mounds of rubbish sorting them into piles to be sold for new uses. Bones that once sat on dinner plates, or the rejected rubbish of butchers, is sold for carving material. The glass, metals and plastic are taken away to be recycled.

Physically, Grambangla School is very basic. It sits between mounds of waste. The classrooms are dark; lit only by the dust thick light from the doorless entrance ways. Bamboo poles hold the iron sheet walling and rocks secure the roof. Hanging on the walls are colourful posters: a world map and the alphabet in Bengali and English. Everything is coated by the dust and stench.

Not all children go to the school, mostly because there are not enough places, and some of the parents want their children working alongside them picking waste. Immediately next to the school I noticed a girl siting on a small clearing she has made on the ground. Her mother moved about the mounds plucking though the rubbish, picking out syringes and glass bottles. They are both bare footed and without gloves. The girl removed the needles with pliers and cuts off the screw tops with a rusty clamp. Her mother gestured for her daughter to look away from the curious visitors. Most likely, this girl will follow the same path as her mother.

A meter away the school children may have a different future. When entering the class they ran to take a closer look at their visitors. ‘Hello, how are you? Hello how are you?’ they called out in their best English extending their hands to be shaken. The school uniform was a blue shirt for the boys while the girls were free to where the traditional colors and headscarves. Beaming eyes and grins stood out in the dust, ‘Hello, how are you?’, they repeated until each hand had been shaken.

The school provides the Wasterpicker’s children with the opportunity for a new future that in turn will help their parents and families in years to come. They learn to read and write in Bengali and English. They learn of the different occupational possibilities, basic hygiene; and above all that their worth is equal to all others. But the school is not the only focus of the social workers. They know that the Wastepickers community as a whole needs support.

The Wastepickers came from different parts of Bangladesh to seek a better life, and in doing so they left behind their traditional and extended family safety nets. ‘These nets of obligation to one another’, a social worker explained, ‘must be recreated even though the people come from every direction of the wind’.
As informal workers, Wastepickers can’t join a union but with support from the social workers they have been able to form a Cooperative. I attended one of their meetings. One Wastepicker explained why they have formed a Cooperative. She showed me an identity card worn around her neck held with a blue ribbon and pointed out that they all wore the cards. ‘These show everyone that we belong’, she said through an interpreter: ‘People don’t want to recognise us, but we belong’.

She continued, ‘We make a regular small payment to the Cooperative and we can use this money for training or for when one has need’. She asked another woman to speak: ‘I arrange the training’, she said, ‘hand washing, hygiene and learning new skills’. Another woman said she was the Cooperative’s Women’s Rights Officer, ‘We need to talk about women’s rights’, she said, ‘because if we don’t talk about them, we don’t have them’.

At the end of the meeting I was asked if I could present a gift on behalf or the global profession. It had been organised by the social workers for a 15-year-old young man. Last year he had lost his foot and lower leg while picking waste. As soon as he was well enough the social workers organised for a local tailor to train him and his sister in a new profession where having both feet was not necessary. His mother spoke to thank the social workers; ‘Our family will all have a better life now’ she said, ‘my children will help the whole family. Our lives are changed’.

That afternoon we visited the Director General and senior officials of the Department of Social Services to advocate for the expansion of social protection systems that enable people to take control and shape their own futures. Because of the work of the  Social Work Association Bangladesh there were plenty of positive example to draw from.
—

I wish to acknowledge and thank Mr Repon Chowdhury Secretary-General of the  Social Work Association Bangladesh and social workers who work with The Bangladesh Occupational Safety, Health and Environment Foundation that created the programme with the Wastepickers community.

Employment: CYMH - Lower Similameen, BC

LOWER SIMILKAMEEN

COMMUNITY SERVICES SOCIETY

CHILD & YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH CLINICIAN

Term (5 months) – Part-time

The Lower Similkameen Community Services Society, in partnership with the Ministry of Children and Family Development, Child and Youth Mental Health Services, is seeking a qualified individual to deliver a full range of mental health services to children and youth living in the Princeton area, for a five (5) month term. Candidates will have a Master level education in the human services field, or be a Registered Psychiatric Nurse, with at least two years experience working in both a psychiatric and a school setting.

Start date: March 2015 

Hours: 28 per week

Hourly Wage: $31.25 (Grid 17, Step 1, UFCW Community Agreement)

Use of a personal vehicle is required. Clearance through a criminal record review is required. A job description is available, contact admin@LSCSS.com for a copy.

Closing date for applications: February 24, 2015 4:00 p.m.

Please send applications marked “Confidential” - Competition #2015-CYMH by mail, facsimile or e-mail to:

Lower Similkameen Community Services Society

720 – 3^rd Street

Keremeos, BC V0X 1N3

Fax: (250) 499-2333

E-Mail: admin@LSCSS.com

Employment: Alzheimer Society Coordinator - Vancouver BC

ALZHEIMER SOCIETY OF B.C.

SUPPORT & EDUCATION/FIRST LINK® COORDINATOR
Vancouver

Temporary Full Time to approximately December 31, 2015 with possibility of extension.

First Link® is an early intervention service designed to connect individuals and families affected by Alzheimer's disease or another dementia with services and support as soon as possible after diagnosis. Formal referral from physicians and health professionals allows for proactive contact with individuals and families.

Working as part of a team within an assigned area, the SEC/FLC will coordinate First Link referral systems and outreach to clients, deliver support and education programs, and build strong community and health care professional relationships.

A list of responsibilities and desired qualifications can be read via the Alzheimer Society of B.C. website.

Forward by email your resume with a cover letter that details how your qualifications match this position and include your salary expectation:

Email: humanresources@alzheimerbc.org

Human Resources

Alzheimer Society of B.C.

300 - 828 West 8th Avenue

Vancouver, B.C. V5Z 1E2

Posting closes: February 23, 2015

Global Professional Development: Recovery 2.0 Conference

Recovery 2.0: #MoveBeyond Addiction

Whether It's Your First Day Sober, You've Been in Recovery For Years, You Have a Loved One Who Has Struggled With Addiction, Or You Work in the Field of Recovery, Find Inspiration and Support at the 4th Annual Recovery 2.0 Conference!

Location: Online

Dates: February 6-12, 2015

Register here: http://recovery2point0.com/

What the Conference is About?

Addiction is the greatest social problem of our time. It causes damage and heartbreak. It tears families apart and ends lives. But addiction doesn’t just mean drugs and alcohol: for many of us it’s food, sex, gambling, pornography and other behaviours that we struggle with every day. Addiction is on the rise and it’s really killing us.

There is a solution. 

LEARN MORE

Our friend Tommy Rosen has launched a movement called Recovery 2.0 to share cutting edge information, inspiration and applicable tools to move beyond addiction.

The fourth Recovery 2.0 online Conference is coming up February 6-12 and it is completely FREE. The conference features 30 experts (including Dr. Maté) offering holistic approaches to treating addiction and finding sustainable long-term recovery in these powerful presentations. 

No one needs to walk the path of recovery alone. There is a wealth of experience, wisdom, hope and community waiting for us all at The Recovery 2.0 Online Conference.

Professional Development: Training in Using Puppets in Play Therapy - Vancouver

British Columbia Play Therapy Association Presents: 

Beyond Punch and Judy: Using Puppets for Growth and Healing (6 CEU's)

Also eligible for CACPT Foundation Training Credits

Presented by: Greg Lubimiv, MSS RPT

Date: February 28, 2015 9:30am - 5pm

Location: UBC Robson Square, HSBC Hall

COST: $75.00 (Before Feb. 13th, 2015 for BCPTA members)

$125.00 (Before Feb. 13th, 2015 for Non-members)

ABOUT THE WORKSHOP

Puppets have been used for centuries to entertain and educate children and adults. In more recent times we have learned to use puppets to engage and heal children, youth and families. This workshop will provide participants with the key skills to help puppets come alive and become powerful tools in all settings. Greg has over 30 years of experience using puppets in all areas of his clinical and administrative work and provides a dynamic, creative and engaging experience for participants.

ABOUT THE PRESENTER

Greg has over 30 years of experience using puppets in all areas of his clinical and administrative work and provides a dynamic, creative and engaging experience for participants. He is great in using puppets and even his own shoe to engage the most resistant parents in therapy. His work with puppets is popular on many levels of therapeutic work with children, youth and families.

Don’t miss out! Register now! Spaces are limited!

For more information and to register go to www.bcplaytherapy.ca