Geriatric psychiatry services
Eligibility
To access these services at the CISSS de la Montérégie-Ouest, call the reception desk at your local CLSC.
To find your local CLSC, click here.
Services provided
Geriatric and geriatric psychiatry clinic
This clinic provides multidisciplinary assessment and consultation services for people aged 70 and over, or with a geriatric profile, who present with complex geriatric syndromes.
The objective is to support the front-line teams to ensure optimal biopsychosocial management of a user with geriatric syndromes. The user must be known to the front-line services and present with medical, biopsychosocial or functional problems that require a multidisciplinary assessment, such as:
- Major neurocognitive disorders;
- Behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia;
- Falls;
- Incontinence;
- Depressive symptoms;
- Deconditioning or immobility;
- Polypharmacy;
- Malnutrition.
The reasons for referral can include:
- Assistance with making a diagnosis;
- Therapeutic recommendations (pharmacological and non-pharmacological);
- Support with user management;
- Identification of risks associated with home care;
- Recommendations on keeping the user safe in their living environment;
- Recommendations on the appropriate type of living environment.
Housing units for users with behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD)
BPSD units are safe living environments adapted to the needs of users with behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia.
These units are available in intermediate resources for users with moderate BPSDs and in long-term care centres for users with severe BPSDs.
Users in these units cannot be kept in “regular” units without significantly disturbing the peace or threatening the safety of the other residents.
The physical environment and clinical programs in the units make its easier to address the users’ behavioural issues, giving the BPSDs time to stabilize.
Memory clinic
The memory clinic, also known as the cognition clinic, supports the doctors and front-line teams with diagnosing and treating cognitive disorders related to aging.
The target users have complex cognitive disorders that require clinical support for diagnosis or management (e.g., atypical disease presentation, possible early‑stage dementia, symptoms of young-onset dementia, etc.).
The front-line workers and secondary care partners involved in the service also commit to following continuing professional development courses.