St. Joseph’s Hospital is starting a new program to help senior citizens cope with anxiety, depression and life changes.
Taylor Matlick, program director for St. Joseph’s Hospital Senior Life Solutions, attended the Jan. 6 Rotary Club of Buckhannon-Upshur meeting to describe the new program.
“We see patients who are typically over the age of 65, and we work on depression, anxiety and any life experience they might be struggling with,” Matlick said. “We sit down in a group setting. They can come up to three times a week. We also do individualized therapy and family sessions, as well as medication management. Our goal is just to help seniors in the community.”
The program itself has been around since about 2003, but this is the first time it has been offered at St. Joseph’s Hospital.
“We’re excited to get the word out,” Matlick said. “I would love to hear from you to see how we can help support the community and get everybody together to raise awareness for depression and anxiety in our elderly population, because sometimes there is a stigma associated with that.”
The program does not require a referral; an interested patient only needs to call to see if the program is a good fit for them.
“If you or your loved one is interested, or if you know somebody who could benefit from the program, it doesn’t take a provider referral like a typical specialist. All I need is a name and contact information,” Matlick said. “We can reach out and let them know about the program and see if it’s a good fit.”
For more information, call the WVU Medicine Senior Life Solutions program at 304-460-7455.
