By 2030, one in three Vermonters will be over the age of 60; One third of the state’s population.
Earlier this year, the Vermont Department of Health released the Age Strong VT draft plan, citing that the state’s aging population will reach a peak. The draft plan names eight pillars in aging strong: self-determination, safety and protection, financial security, optimal health and wellness, social connection and engagement, housing, transportation and community design, family caregiver support, and finally, coordinated, and efficient system of services. In all eight of these pillars, mental health is woven throughout–playing an intricate part in each pillar’s ability to continue standing strong.
Older adult clients hold cumulative life experiences that make their mental health needs different from their younger counterparts, in addition to the physical implications that come with aging. The World Health Organization [WHO] reported in October of 2023 older adults are more likely to experience a variety of adverse effects that come from the act of retiring from a lifetime of work. Loss of income, a sense of purpose, ageism, social isolation, and disconnection are some of the outcomes for older adults sliding into the “Golden Years” promised to them after years of work.
The result: staggering rates of completed suicide among older adults.
“Among people who attempt suicide, one in four older adults will succeed, compared to 1 in 200 youths. Even if an older adult fails a suicide attempt, they are less likely to recover from the effects due to frailty or underlying health conditions,” The World Health Organization reported in an article from January 9, 2024.
Vermont is not exempt from these numbers.
11 older adult suicide deaths per month was the three-year average between 2020 through 2022 according to Vermont Department of Health’s monthly suicide report (July 2023).
In 2023 alone, according to the same source, there were an average of 8.3 older adult suicide deaths per month.
Currently serving 155 clients aged 60 and over, Clara Martin Center (CMC) is answering the call to act.
“We are evaluating what capacity we currently have internal to our agency to expand and, if not, we will look at an expansion of our workforce to bring on additional staff to serve this population,” Christie Everett, Director of Operations for the Clara Martin Center, explained about the agency’s focus on older adult programming in the days to come. “[And] our current staff we are supporting with enhanced trainings focused on this stage of life.”
According to Everett, one way CMC is looking to address this is through the expansion and evaluation of the capacity for in-home or office-based services, case management, nursing, and psychiatry. The agency is also looking at screening tools to evaluate social determinants of health, expanding wellness programming to be a cross-program benefit, and looking to identify CMC staff to be trained as Care Navigators to assist with insurance enrollment and explanation of benefits.
Dani Drown, Adult Services Coordinator with client receiving services in our Adult Outpatient Program participating during a recent CMC Holiday Basket event.
The Columbia Suicide Severity Rating Scale is one screening tool CMC is looking to roll out within this calendar year.
“The focus of our zero suicide efforts is for anyone that comes in to be screened for risk of suicide,” said Everett. “Doing that across the board and not just targeting specific people to screen for risk factors allows us a better chance of identifying individuals who need increased supports at a critical time in their life.”
Though not specific to Older Adults, she said it will provide the initial screening to assess suicide risk when someone is first coming through the door for services.
According to the 2022 Vermont Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey report, 8 percent of those ages 65 and over rarely or never get the social or emotional support needed. In Orange County, much of the social and emotional support programming that existed prior to COVID-19 has been altered or been slow to start up again.
Some programs have ceased to exist all together.
“One of the ways that we are focusing our work is on connecting with our local senior centers and community nurse programs to enhance our collaboration and identification of older adults that might need targeted support,” Everett said.
CMC has staff trained in various techniques, including those specific to grief, end of life, and death and dying, with at least one staff trained as an End-of-Life Doula.
Looking ahead, CMC has started laying the groundwork for other possible collaborations. The agency has started exploring the Howard Center’s embedded SASH clinician pilot program to explore additional options on how to support this population. Conversations with Gifford Medical Center about an EMT House Call program have been had and select agency staff have been trained as Mental Health First Aid trainers, to help community members identify first signs that someone may need support.
The need to support older Vermonters has always been woven into the agency’s tapestry.
In 2018, Clara Martin Center received the Governor’s Award for Business Excellence in Supporting Mature Workers. Work schedule flexibility and accommodations, training and skills development, employment opportunity, recruitment and retention, and retirement and retirement planning are all evaluated, in relation to older Vermont workers, to receive this award.
“The population, as a whole, is aging and that includes people with mental health issues,” said Dr. Kevin Buchanan, Psychiatrist and Medical Director for the Clara Martin Center. “They tend to be more complex because they often have social and economic needs, and they can also be harder to treat medication-wise because of health issues and polypharmacy. It is more challenging. We need to be equipped to care for those people with mental health issues, as they age.”
Clara Martin Center is a community-based non-profit organization that provides acute and lon-term behavioral health care services since 1966. Learn more by visiting us at www.claramartin.org
This article is part of a series collaboratively produced by Vermont Care Partners and its members. Vermont Care Partners is a statewide network of sixteen non-profit, community based agencies providing developmental disability, mental health, and substance use services.
