Who is a geriatrician? Is he someone special who takes care of a particular category of individuals? Well, the one-word answer to it is yes. However, to know who they are and what they do, we have to dive deeper.
In one sentence, geriatricians are doctors who specialize in taking care of people who are above sixty. Since seniors have specific kinds of health problems, not every doctor can handle their illnesses and diseases.
Geriatric internists handle, maintain, and manage quite a few aspects of old people. Here in this blog, we have discussed everything about them so that it may help your loved ones. Let’s check what is covered.
Table of Contents
Role of a Geriatric Internist
Common Health Conditions Dealt by Geriatric Doctor
Role of a Geriatric Internist: What Do They Do?
The main responsibility of a geriatric care professional is diverse. It includes almost everything that any other primary care facilitator does. For example;
Diagnosis of the Disease
Before starting any treatment, diagnosis is a must – something that can’t start just like that. For it, the patient must make an internist appointment with a compatible geriatrician. In the diagnosis procedure, a body examination, screening, and blood work are carried out. After which, the doctor draws a conclusion. On that basis, treatment starts right after discussing the payment plan (whether the patient is covered by health insurance).
It is noteworthy that not all diseases are treatable, and they last longer than other health concerns. For instance, the following are some of the main concerns that are dealt with by geriatricians.
- Alzheimer’s Disease
- Dementia
- Insomnia
- Osteoporosis
- Depression
- Cancer
- Heart and Kidney Issues
PS: These diseases take a considerable duration to come to the point where they are manageable. In the worst-case scenarios, the patient experiences hopelessness and several types of mental health problems.
Treatment of the Illness
Similar to diagnosis, treatment is also a crucial phase. It is the point where geriatricians try different medicines to see the reactions in the body. If the prescribed medicines work in favor of medicine, they are continued for some time until the need for change is felt by the panel of geriatrician internists.
Preventive Measures of the Health Concerns
Once the symptoms and reactions are stabilized, there is no sign of relapse, and doctors take patients off the medicine. However, wearing off or tapering off medicines is done after checking the body in-depth. It clearly means chronic diseases like cholesterol issues, blood pressure or hypertension concerns, diabetes, etc., are mostly treated throughout the entire span of life. Interestingly, there are always miracles, and they actually happen! That’s why doctors always give a deep insight into the phase between preventive measures and treatment.
Geriatricians Internists Collaborations
Internists who work as geriatricians work in collaboration with the following healthcare facilitators to bring out the best results;
- Caregivers and guardians
- Near ones like family members
- Nurses and primary care doctors
- Family doctors
- Social workers
- Mental health professionals
- Pharmacists
- Physical therapists
Geriatric care internists near me are the best to go to for a number of reasons. First of all, they are easy to reach in emergencies. Secondly, the side effects are handled with care, which makes the interactions easy for the patient. Besides that, collaborating with the professionals, including internists near me and primary care support, is relaxing and comforting for the geriatricians, bringing the aged person back to the normal course of life.
Common Health Conditions Dealt by Geriatric Doctor
Every doctor plays his role in keeping and maintaining maximum goodness in the health of the patients; geriatricians also contribute their presence toto the patient’s overall health. However, as we know, not every disease is treated by general physicians, nor is it diagnosed by those who haven’t given due time and gotten a degree. Likewise, geriatricians treat some common and chronic diseases.
Let’s take a deeper dive into the list of diseases or health concerns elderly people go through and how they manage to make internist appointments.
Mental Health: Depression and Anxiety
According to research and studies, it is revealed that old people who are taken care of by nurses in the home are 14% affected by depression as compared to hospitalized ones (12% of people are diagnosed with depression and anxiety). For these elderly individuals, depression is not similar to those who are clinically diagnosed with depression. Sadly, with age, individuals tend to fall sick more than in the youth or prime age. To cater to illnesses and treat them accordingly, they are prescribed medications that have depression as a side effect. Other side effects of medications given to old people include dizziness and shortened breathing patterns.
The question here arises is, how do geriatricians eliminate a fine percentage of depression in these people? Here are some ways;
- Therapies are one of the best ways (cognitive behavioral therapy) in which group counseling is conducted. It fosters positivity and helps in changing negative thinking patterns.
- Antidepressants work as a charm in many cases.
- Reminiscence therapy is another way to deal with depression. In this method, patients are asked to zoom out and look outside their bodies to analyze how their lives look.
Fun Fact: Interestingly, internist geriatricians are given ample training sessions and have tons of experience. It helps them to monitor and assess shifts in moods.
Urinary Incontinence
With the aging factor, a lot of concerns start showing their presence. For example, when the bladder weakens, an elderly person finds it hard to control peeing. That is when the patient shouldn’t feel guilty while taking an internist appointment. He should instead embrace it and deal with the situation without any embarrassment. Also, the patient shouldn’t deal with it as if urinary incontinence is not treatable – that is where geriatric care comes into play.
Here is what they will ask you, the patient, to do;
- Get a urodynamic test (it determines the strength a balder has to hold and then release urine).
- After getting the report, medication is prescribed.
- Supplementary aids (like liners, etc.).
- Different sorts of exercises to strengthen the bladder.
- Schedule a chart for urination.
- If needed, the geriatrician suggests surgery.
PS: All of these treatment plans are customized according to the requirements and varies case to case.
Dementia
Dementia in old age is quite a condition to deal with. The reason for it is not just because a person who experiences dementia forgets normal happenings of life – something that disrupts the daily routine. The role of an internist who happens to be a geriatrician is to provide prognosis, diagnosis, treatment, and management of the disease.
Geriatricians perform memory, mood, potential, and ability tests to draw a conclusion on whether a person is going through dementia or not. Besides that, if you want to know if your beloved or yourself is going through dementia, please search for “internist near me in Coachella” now. Book an internist appointment and get a conclusion to work on.
Fun Fact: Alzheimer’s cases are mostly of those who have dementia. According to the latest statistics and research, 60 to 80 percent of dementia patients have Alzheimer’s disease.
Insomnia
Unlike young adults, elderly people experience a lack of sleep. It leaves an extreme impact on their overall health, quality of daily routine, fatigue, and restlessness. All of these concerns lead to something bigger to the extent that it is only treated through medicines. So, what does a geriatric professional offer in such cases? Well, it is all linked to the severity, complications associated with other diseases or illnesses, if any, and the take of the patient (how much he wants to change and is willing to take medicines, etc.).
So, if a patient is ready for the treatment with all honesty and sincerity, he should take an internist appointment. Most of the time, geriatric care professionals suggest and work on the following areas with the patients;
- Therapy sessions (whether in person or in group) are highly recommended to those who are insomniac due to health issues.
- Hygiene awareness and sound sleep at night are other alternatives. That is explained in detail to the elderly people.
- Interventions like pharmacological practices are also suggested and taken care of by a geriatrician.
Osteoporosis
Another condition in which bones and joints get weak, there is more risk of fractures, and all the muscles start losing strength is called osteoporosis. This is a health issue that happens after sixty women. If you ask what the reason behind it is, well, it is because of low bone density.
Senior individuals tend to have the following risk factors with osteoporosis;
- Hormonal changes
- Low or zero activity
- Insufficient vit D and calcium in the body
- Genetics
- Specific medicines
Geriatricians help patients with osteoporosis by treating and suggesting interventions that can do good for them in the long term. For example, they suggest maintaining weight by exercising, eating adequate and healthy food, avoiding habits like smoking and drinking too much alcohol, taking medicines, and wearing knee pads to prevent pain after falling.