Geriatric Depression

Clinicians working across mental health fields will find this book useful for understanding why depression in later life is so difficult to treat, along with the interventions that work best. Gary J. Kennedy, a geriatric psychiatrist, combines years of hands-on practice with a review of current research. He covers medication, talk therapy, other psychosocial and lifestyle approaches, and electroconvulsive therapy, giving particular attention to depression that appears alongside psychosis, mania, dementia, or grief. Suicide prevention receives its own detailed treatment.

Throughout, Kennedy argues that care works best when services are coordinated across different settings and when clinicians build solid working relationships with patients and their families. Tables scattered through the text summarize the key points of each intervention so they can be consulted quickly.

The book is a companion to the same author's Geriatric Mental Health: A Treatment Guide for Health Professionals, which offers a framework for the psychiatric conditions most often seen in older patients.