What is Geriatric Psychiatry?
Geriatric psychiatry is a specialty focused on preventing, evaluating, diagnosing, and treating emotional and mental disorders in older adults.
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Geriatric psychiatrists are psychiatrists that specialize in the diagnosis, care, research about, and treatment of mental conditions affecting older adults. The specialized field of geriatric psychiatry is also commonly referred to as geropsychiatry, geripsych, geri-psychiatry, or psychogeriatrics. Geriatric psychiatrists provide care to their patients in a wide variety of settings, such as private practice, hospitals, assisted living facilities, in-patient care centers, and veteran care centers.
As people learn more about living healthier lives, our lifespans continue to increase, and the demand for geriatric psychiatrists is also going to increase. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the current average lifespan for an American is 78.8 years, while in 1960, the average life expectancy was 69.66 years.
A Rising Need for Geriatric Psychiatrists
Numerous studies have repeatedly confirmed the increasing incidence of mental illness among the aging population.
Keep Reading ExpandThe proportion of the population over age 65 will increase from 12.4% of the U.S. population in 2000 to 20% by the year 2030 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000). During the same time, the number of older adults with mental illness is expected to double to 15 million (Jeste et. al., 1999).
This demographic transition will increase the current shortfall of health care providers with geriatric expertise − and specifically health care providers with geriatric mental health expertise. Since 1990, approximately 2,500 psychiatrists have received subspecialty certification in geriatric psychiatry. This supply of physicians is woefully inadequate to meet the future needs of the nation. According to estimates in the President's Commission on Mental Health Subcommittee on Older Adults (2003), "at the current rate of graduating approximately 80 new geriatric psychiatrists each year and an estimated 3% attrition, there will be approximately 2,640 geriatric psychiatrists by the year 2030 or one per 5,682 older adults with a psychiatric disorder." It has been estimated that 4,000 − 5,000 geriatric psychiatrists who provide patient care are needed (National Institute on Aging, 1997) and an additional 1,220 physician faculty members and 919 non-physician faculty members who provide training in geriatric psychiatry to meet the future demand.
"Think young-or old. Psychiatrists who want to land the best jobs . . . will go after training in child and adolescent psychiatry or geriatric psychiatry, job market experts tell us. While no hard numbers are yet available, recruiters have also seen a recent upturn in the number of requests for clinicians trained in geriatric psychiatry. And, based on the aging of the population and the prospect of better Medicare reimbursements for psychiatric treatment, geriatric training is a good long-term bet."- CLINICAL PSYCHIATRY NEWS, JANUARY 1999
Training
Geriatric psychiatric training requires 4 years of medical school, 4 years of approved residency training in general psychiatry, and 1 year of specialty fellowship training in psychiatric work with older adults in an accredited residency in geriatric psychiatry.
Keep Reading ExpandIn the general psychiatry training years, the physician achieves competence in the fundamentals of the theory and practice of psychiatry. In the geriatric psychiatry training, the trainee acquires a thorough knowledge of specific body of scientific knowledge about aging and mental health including patient care, medical knowledge, interpersonal and communication skills, practice-based learning and improvement, professionalism, and system-based practices.
To find a list of accredited geriatric psychiatry fellowship programs, please visit the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education website.
Certification
When the psychiatry resident has completed their geriatric psychiatry fellowship and successfully passed the certification examination in general psychiatry given by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN), they are eligible to take the additional certification examination in the subspecialty of geriatric psychiatry.
Keep Reading ExpandAlthough the ABPN examinations are not required for practice, they are an assurance of excellence and an indication to patients and employers of expertise in geriatric psychiatry.
For more information on certification in geriatric psychiatry, please refer to the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, Inc. website.
"Members of the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry who have received their subspecialty certification report a higher salary level than those who have not sat for and passed the certification exam."
- AAGP MEMBERSHIP SURVEY, 2003
Career Satisfaction
"Physicians who specialize in the treatment of children, newborns, the elderly, and skin disorders and who practice in the New England and West Central regions of the country are more satisfied with their careers than their colleagues in other specialties and regions."
- Researchers at UC Davis School of Medicine and Medical Center
August 2002
"In a national survey of fellows who had trained in geriatric medicine and psychiatry, the vast majority of former fellows expressed satisfaction with their current work. Satisfaction with a career choice in geriatrics was significantly greater among those physicians who had practices with large numbers of patients over 75, accepted Medicare assignment, spent their time as clinician-researchers, and had a medical school appointment."
- Siu, Al; Beck, JC; UCLA Department of Medicine
1990 Career Development Opportunities in Geriatric Psychiatry
"In fact, a recent study found that geriatric physicians were more likely to have very high career satisfaction than physicians from 32 other specialties."
- Archives of Internal Medicine
July 2002
AAGP Mentoring/Training Programs
The American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry (AAGP) has several programs for medical students, residents, and fellows for the purpose of increasing exposure to and interest in geriatric psychiatry. These programs have been very successful in that students, residents, and fellows have had the opportunity to be mentored by senior geriatric psychiatrists, attend the AAGP Annual Meeting, receive the scientifically peer review journal, the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, among other benefits and programmatic components. For the latest information on available AAGP mentoring/training programs, please visit www.AAGPonline.org/scholars.
Learn MoreNIH Research Loan Repayment Program
The National Institutes of Health offers Loan Repayment Programs to attract health professionals to careers in clinical, pediatric, health disparity, or contraceptive and infertility research. In exchange for a two or three-year (for Intramural General Research) commitment to your research career, NIH will repay part of your qualified educational debt. In addition, the NIH will make corresponding Federal tax payments for credit to your Internal Revenue Service tax account that you incur as a result of your LRP benefits. For more information, visit the NIH website at www.lrp.nih.gov.
Learn MoreHow to Find a Geriatric Psychiatrist
To support the overall health and well-being of older adults, it is as important to address your mental health just as you would physical health. You will need to surround your aging loved ones with a dedicated support team. This can include family members, caregivers, and mental health clinicians.
Depending on where you live, you may or may not have easy access to a geriatric psychiatrist, but often you can find providers that offer virtual services. Use the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry's database to search for the a geriatric psychiatry specialist in your state.
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