Independence at Home, a SCAN Health Plan community service, has announced the launch of a new program designed to address growing issues of substance and alcohol abuse among senior citizens.
The program, set for a pilot stage in Long Beach, is called Substance Assistance for Elders (S.A.F.E.) and will provide screening, assessment, counseling, brief therapy and action for seniors who may be misusing alcohol, drugs or prescription medication. In Long Beach specifically, Independence at Home anticipates the potential to reach hundreds of seniors and their caregivers who may be struggling with substance abuse.
“With older adults utilizing one-third of all prescription medications, misuse and abuse is a very dangerous and growing problem,” said Dr. Marsha Meyer, PharmD, CGP, CGCM, director of Health and Wellness Services for Independence at Home in a statement.
As part of the S.A.F.E. rollout, more than 100 local social workers, nurses and personnel serving the senior community recently attended a workshop at The Grand in East Long Beach where they learned how to recognize the risk factors, signs and symptoms of substance abuse in older adults. The training was presented by Dr. Alison Moore, a professor of medicine and geriatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Moore shared her research on drinking and drug use patterns in people 65 and older.
“There are different risks for older adults, because of physiological changes and increases in medication use and other morbidity,” Moore said in a statement. “As you age your brain is more sensitive to the sedating effects of alcohol and drugs. Also, with increasing age you have a higher blood alcohol level per dose consumed, and many fat soluble drugs stay in your system longer. Additionally, alcohol can interfere with the effectiveness and exacerbate the side effects of prescription medication.”
Independence at Home said risk factors for late-life substance abuse include isolation, bereavement and retirement as well as physical limitations, insomnia, anxiety and pain.
“Substance abuse often goes undiagnosed due to a variety of factors, including ageism, denial, and/ or lack of access to services in the community,” according to a statement issued by Independence at Home. “Independence at Home’s S.A.F.E. program aims to fill this gap in services to improve client health outcomes and quality of life and also to provide educational resources to increase awareness about these issues in the older adult community.”
Those interested in participating in the S.A.F.E. program have to prove eligibility by being 55 or older, or a caregiver for someone 55 or older. For more information about the program, call 866-421-1964.