Mental disorders are becoming more prevalent in today's society as people add stress and pressure to their daily lives. The elderly population is not eliminated as a candidate for a disorder just because they may be retired. In fact, mental disorders affect 1 in 5 elderly people. One would think that with disorders being rather prevalent in this age group that there would be an abundance of treatment programs, but this is not the case. Because the diagnosis of an individual's mental state is subjective in nature, many troubled people go untreated regularly (summer 1998). Depression in the elderly population is a common occurrence, yet the diagnosis and treatment seem to slip through the cracks.

Depression is an example of a metal condition that may slip through the cracks when it comes to detection. The health care industry contributes to the overlooking of depression in the elderly because of the overwhelming desire to keep costs down. The factors of depression are open for interpretation, which results in different doctors looking for different things. In addition to that, elderly people may not exhibit the traditional symptoms of depression either. Aged individ

Patient Care. March 30, 1999. V3. P19.

Pinkowish, Mary Desmond. "Keeping Older Patients Depression Free."

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Approximate Word count = 2466
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)