Saturday, June 20th, 2015. Aaron Humes Reporting: Belize has long had a young population but increasingly as they get older they are afflicted by certain disorders including depression, Alzheimer’s disease, anxiety and dementia. They also suffer bereavement from loss of family members both young and old.
About 15% of Belize’s over-60 population have accessed a mental health clinic for such problems. Practitioners are being shown the latest information as part of the plan of action to address these issues, as explained by Nursing Administrator in the Ministry of Health’s Mental Health Unit, Nurse Eleanor Bennett who says that services for older persons are available and they do not have to suffer in silence.
The workshop took place at the Belize Institute of Management and was facilitated by Dr. Amy Aloysi, an assistant professor at the Department of Psychiatry and Neurology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City. She specializes in the diagnosis and management of Alzheimer’s disease.