A research psychiatrist using a standardized interview found that 94% of
a random sample of residents at a large, intermediate-care nursing home had
mental disorders according to DSM-III criteria. Primary degenerative
dementia and multi-infarct dementia were the most common diagnoses. In
addition, the majority of demented patients also had noncognitive symptoms
such as delusions and hallucinations, and these residents were
significantly more likely to have an associated behavioral disorder than
were residents without delusions or hallucinations. Replications of these
results would point out the need for major revisions in the funding and
delivery of psychiatric care for nursing home residents.
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