Health Promotion and Aging "mental Health"

Intgoduction: The emphasis in this paper is on the direction that health promotion efforts might take to enhance the mental health of the elderly by building on the established effectiveness of primary, secondary and tertiary health care interventions. This approach accepts that health promotion strategies should invoke the capacity of elderly persons to take responsibility for their health style and care decisions and should thus make available the requisite information and a social and service environment which allow8 a proper role in such decisions; and that individuals at high risk for mental health problems should be targeted for special efforts in health promotion as well as screening, risk appraisal and early intervention programs.