August Behavioral Health & Aging Newsletter |
|
|
|
Welcome to OCEBHA’s monthly newsletter! Each month, we highlight noteworthy news and applicable research in behavioral health and aging, as well as upcoming events and opportunities.Â
This month, we’re sharing information about bringing PEARLS to assisted living, providing actionable research for practitioners on preventing caregiver burnout, behavioral health and aging news on how crisis lines like 988 are missing older adults, and linking you to select August events from our partners across Oregon.
|
|
|
|
-
On August 26th from 12:00-1:30 PM PT, join us for the webinar, "From Screening to Safety Planning: Recognizing Depression and Providing Suicide Care for Older Adults" with Dr. Manvi Smith. Learn more and register at: https://ocebhawebinar826.rsvpify.com/Â
-
OCEBHA received a grant from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, allowing us to offer PEARLS coach training at no cost, and to offer PEARLS to assisted living residents in Oregon. The Program to Encourage Active, Rewarding Lives (PEARLS) is an evidence-based program designed to help older adults develop skills to maintain their health, happiness, and independence. PEARLS teaches older adults the skills necessary to take action and make lasting life changes so they can lead more active, joyful, and rewarding lives. Â
- How Can PEARLS Benefit Assisted Living Staff?Â
- Increases resident engagement in activities by helping to identify what they enjoy.Â
-
Reduces staff workload by providing residents with practical skills to manage their day to day stressors.Â
- Demonstrates commitment to person centered care by offering evidence-based behavioral health programming.Â
- Minimizes transitions in care by decreasing rates of inpatient hospitalization & nursing home visits.Â
-
How Does PEARLS Benefit Assisted Living Residents?Â
- Gain an understanding of the root causes of late-life depression and how to manage symptoms.Â
- Learn practical skills to reduce social isolation and rebuild community connections.Â
-
Use problem-solving techniques and activity planning to create meaningful routines. Â
- Interested in learning more about PEARLS and offering it within your community? Email poweror@pdx.edu for more information and to set up a meeting to discuss further!
-
There’s just a month and half until our 3rd annual Behavioral Health and Aging Conference: Navigating the Intersection of Justice and Dignity in Older Adult Behavioral Health convenes on September 15-16th in Wilsonville, OR. Get involved: register, submit an abstract to present, or support the conference by sponsoring the event. Learn more by visiting: https://ocebha.rsvpify.com/Â
|
|
|
|
Recent Research Highlights |
|
|
|
-
Caregiver burnout is a state of physical, emotional and mental exhaustion caused by the ongoing stress and demands of caring for another person.
- According to a 2025 AARP report of 6,858 adult caregivers, two-thirds reported increased emotional stress, nearly one-quarter said they struggled to care for themselves and almost one-quarter reported feeling isolated. Women were also more likely than men to experience higher levels of emotional strain.
- Read this article to learn more about preventing caregiver burnout.
|
-
Some people don’t mind spending time alone, while others hate it. But older people who struggle with loneliness, rather than from strictly being alone, may be more likely to develop thinking and memory problems and to die earlier than people who do not have such challenges.Â
-
Feeling lonely was consistently linked to worsening cognitive health and a shorter life, even after accounting for social isolation. A 10% increase in participants’ loneliness scores was associated with an 8% to 9% higher risk of transitioning from normal cognition to mild cognitive impairment and a similarly greater risk of developing severe cognitive impairment.Â
-
Unlike loneliness, however, spending time alone (either by choice or circumstance) was not consistently associated with cognitive impairment and showed only a weak link with dying prematurely.Â
- The full study is available in the July 15, 2026 issue of, by the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
|
-
As the US recovers from a July heatwave, a new study in Nature Health warns of an impending uptick in people attending hospitals for mental health and behavioral disorders, according to the first multi-country study of heatwave-related mental health hospitalization, led by Monash University in Australia.
-
The association between exposure to a heatwave and hospitalization for mental and behavioral disorders was more pronounced among older adults and residents of low-population-density areas.
|
|
|
|
Behavioral Health & Aging News |
|
|
|
|
“Are 988 and other mental health crisis lines missing people over 50?” published in Michigan Medicine |
In the four years since the launch of the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, the nationwide service for mental health and substance misuse crisis support, Americans have dialed, texted or chatted online with the service over 26 million times.
A recent poll finds that 31% of older adults don’t know of any crisis line, and 69% haven’t heard of 988; lowest awareness is among men and Hispanic adults, who have high or rising suicide rates
In all, 75% of all people aged 50 and older said they would feel at least somewhat comfortable contacting 988 once they received this information. Men were much less likely than women to say they would feel comfortable reaching out to 988, at 68% vs. 81%.
|
|
|
|
|
“Five Million People in U.S. Trained in Mental Health First Aid” reported by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing |
In July, Mental Health First Aid reached a historic milestone by training 5 million people across the United States.
The milestone reflects the growing commitment to improve access to evidence-based programs and follows an announcement from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) that three new funding opportunities are available to support more education and training. SAMHSA has released applications for Project AWARE, Mental Health Awareness (MHAT) and Trauma-Informed Support Services (TISS) grants.
|
|
|
|
|
“Why addiction in older adults is growing — and hard to detect,” published in ASU News |
Addiction to prescription drugs and alcohol among older adults is rising in the U.S. but often goes undetected. In 2023, an estimated 6.4 million Medicare beneficiaries had a substance-use disorder, according to federal data. At the same time, overdose rates among adults 65 and older increased by about 11% from 2022 to 2023, based on CDC estimates. Prescription drug disorders are a growing concern, but alcohol use disorder remains the most common substance use problem, with 1 in 10 older adults reporting binge drinking.Â
Experts say these problems are often overlooked, with fewer than 40% receiving appropriate treatment, in part because symptoms can resemble normal aging or dementia.
|
|
|
|
|
“Oregon awards the largest round of federal rural healthcare grants,” reported by Central Oregon News |
The Oregon Health Authority has so far awarded $175.3 million in grants from a new federal program meant to support rural healthcare.
The Rural Health Transformation Program, established by the massive tax and spending law passed in July 2025, dedicates funding until 2030 for projects aimed at improving the health of people living in rural communities.Â
The agency announced it would distribute $97 million worth of grants to support 136 rural healthcare projects across the state — marking the largest round of funding it has awarded since the program began.
|
|
|
|
Community and Partner Events |
|
|
|
-
Registration is now open for Oregon ECHO Network programs that start in September!Â
-
ECHO is an interactive educational and community-building experience that allows healthcare professionals throughout the state of Oregon to create a case-based learning environment through the convenience of video connection. Enroll for weekly learning sessions on Adult Mental Health, Behavioral Health, Behavioral Health for Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, Suicide Prevention, Dementia in Primary Care, and more!
-
Registration is officially open for the in-person 2026 OCBH Leadership Conference!
-
This year's theme is "Unplug to Recharge," hosted at Sunriver Resort in Sunriver, Oregon. The conference offers a collaborative space to explore cutting-edge trends, discuss innovative treatment models, and share strategic insights with peer leaders in behavioral health.
- Earn up to 13+ CEUs, gain valuable industry knowledge, connect with colleagues, and return to your organization refreshed.
-
August 12, 11:45 - 1:15pm, “What You Want to Know Wednesdays 4.0” hosted by Oregon Behavioral Health Initiative of Portland State UniversityÂ
- “Oregon Public Guardianship” presented by Dean Oakes, NCG & Helen Vaille, MSW, LCSW
- Webinar, Q&A, 1 Oregon NASW CEU
- August 26, 12:00-1:30 PM PT, "From Screening to Safety Planning: Recognizing Depression and Providing Suicide Care for Older Adults"Â with Dr. Manvi Smith.Â
- Learning Objectives:
- To understand the rationale for targeted depression screening in older adults and learning about evidence based screening tools
- To understand the prevalence of suicide risk in older adults and increasing provider comfort with suicide risk assessment
-
To understand rationale for engaging in safety planning and lethal means counseling with those patients who have been identified as being at risk for suicide
- To increase provider comfort with the intervention of safety planning as a standard of care for patients who have been identified as being at risk for suicide.
-
August 27 4:00 - 7:00 PM, “Enhancing Prescription Opioid Safety in Senior Care,” provided by Oregon Care Partners
-
This training explores the risks and benefits of opioid use in older adults and provides practical guidance on pain management, safe storage, and accountability to help caregivers make an impact on harm reduction. Participants will gain practical tools and strategies to help support safer medication use and protect the well-being of those in their care.
- Webinar, 3 CEUs
|
|
|
|
August 21st is Senior Citizens Day |
August 21st is Senior Citizens Day, a time to celebrate and recognize the older adults in your life.Â
|
|
|
|
-
National Senior Citizens Day on August 21st every year to raise awareness about challenges that affect older adults and to recognize the valuable contributions of older people to society. Take some time this National Seniors Citizens day to celebrate and appreciate the older adults in your community for their services, accomplishments and dedication they have given in their lives.
|
|
|
|
Manage your preferences | Opt Out using TrueRemove™
Got this as a forward? Sign up to receive our future emails.
View this email online.
|
Portland State University | Institute on Aging | Portland, OR 97201-0751 US
|
|
|
|
This email was sent to .
To continue receiving our emails, add us to your address book.
|
|
| |
|
|
