May marks both Mental Health Awareness Month and Older Americans Month, making it an important opportunity to recognize that mental health is central to healthy aging. Later life can bring meaningful transitions, including retirement, changing health needs, loss of loved ones, shifts in routine, and changing social connections. These experiences can affect mood, memory, mobility, independence, and overall quality of life.
At Element Care, whole-person care is central to the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) model. PACE brings medical care, behavioral health support, social services, therapies, nutrition, transportation, and community programming into one coordinated plan. In this Q&A, Dr. Zizza discusses why mental health must be treated as a core part of care for older adults, how integrated teams can identify concerns early, and how families and caregivers can help older adults stay connected, supported, and thriving.
Why is mental health such an important part of care for older adults?
Mental health is health. For older adults, emotional well-being influences how people sleep, eat, manage medications, participate in activities, maintain relationships, and stay independent.
Depression and anxiety are common in later life, but they are often missed because they may not look the way people expect. They can show up as fatigue, irritability, sleep changes, appetite changes, pain, memory concerns, or withdrawal from usual routines. Loneliness and grief can also become health risks, especially after retirement, loss, or a major change in physical function.
These concerns are not a normal or inevitable part of aging, and they are not separate from medical care. Untreated depression or anxiety can make chronic conditions harder to manage, decrease mobility, increase fall risk, and reduce quality of life. When we support mental health, we support the whole person: dignity, independence, connection, and purpose.
How does the Element Care PACE model support mental and emotional well-being?
The strength of PACE is that it makes mental health part of everyday care rather than a separate add-on. At Element Care, participants are supported by an interdisciplinary care team that includes primary care providers, nurses, social workers, behavioral health clinicians, rehabilitation therapists, nutrition, activities, transportation, and other professionals working from one coordinated plan.
That team approach makes it easier to notice subtle changes early. A participant may stop coming to meals, appear less engaged in activities, seem more anxious during visits, sleep more, or show new confusion. When the team communicates well, those observations become opportunities to intervene before a concern becomes a crisis.
Element Care also creates daily opportunities for social connection, which is one of the most important protective factors for emotional health. Our centers offer shared meals, adult day health programming, group activities, movement and recreation, and culturally inclusive celebrations. Events such as Senior Olympics and Khmer New Year do more than fill a calendar; they help participants feel seen, included, and part of a community.
Behavioral health support is integrated with primary care, so concerns such as depression, anxiety, grief, cognitive change, or caregiver stress can be addressed with the right level of support at the right time. The goal is not only to treat symptoms, but to help participants keep living with purpose, safety, and connection.
What role do caregivers and families play in supporting mental health?
Families and caregivers are essential partners. They often know the older adult’s baseline best and may be the first to notice small but important changes: less interest in activities, missed meals, poor sleep, medication confusion, irritability, worry, tearfulness, isolation, or changes in memory and function.
When those observations are shared early, the care team can evaluate what is driving the change: mood, medical illness, medication side effects, pain, grief, cognitive decline, or a combination of factors. Early communication helps us respond with the right support rather than waiting until symptoms worsen.
Open conversations matter. A simple, respectful check-in can make it easier for someone to ask for help: ‘I’ve noticed you do not seem like yourself lately. How are you feeling?’ Families can reduce stigma by treating mental health the same way we treat blood pressure, diabetes, or pain: something worth noticing, discussing, and supporting.
Caregivers also need support. Many are balancing work, children, aging parents, and their own health. The Element Care PACE model helps by providing coordinated medical, behavioral, and social support, transportation, day programming, care coordination, and a team that families can turn to. Supporting the caregiver ultimately supports the participant.
How can older adults maintain strong mental health as they age?
I encourage older adults to focus on five practical areas: connection, routine, movement, nutrition, and early care.
Social connection helps protect against isolation, whether it comes from family, friends, faith communities, neighbors, or programs like Element Care. A routine gives structure and purpose. Physical activity, even gentle movement adapted to someone’s abilities, supports mood, sleep, mobility, and brain health. Good nutrition and hydration also matter.
Purpose is just as important. Hobbies, volunteering, cultural traditions, music, storytelling, learning, faith practices, and time with others can all help someone feel grounded and valued.
Finally, people should speak up early when something changes. New sadness, anxiety, loneliness, confusion, sleep problems, or loss of interest should not be dismissed as ‘just aging.’ The earlier we understand what is happening, the better we can help.
How is Element Care working to reduce stigma around mental health?
Stigma decreases when mental health becomes part of ordinary care. At Element Care, we work to make emotional well-being a normal topic in clinical visits, care planning, and family conversations. We do not want participants to feel they have to choose between medical care and mental health care; both are part of the same picture.
Education is a big part of that. Participants and families need to know that depression, anxiety, grief, and loneliness are common and treatable. Staff also need to recognize that distress may show up differently in older adults as withdrawal, pain, agitation, poor appetite, or functional decline.
Most importantly, we try to meet people where they are, with dignity and respect. Asking for help should feel like a sign of strength, not something to hide.
What message would you share during Mental Health Awareness Month and Older Americans Month?
My message is simple: mental health is essential to healthy aging. Older adults deserve care that honors their full experience, not just their diagnoses, but their relationships, routines, culture, goals, losses, fears, and sources of joy.
I also want families and caregivers to know that help is available. Depression, anxiety, loneliness, grief, and caregiver strain are not signs of failure. They are signals that support may be needed. The earlier we talk about them, the more options we have to help someone remain safe, engaged, and connected.
At Element Care, the PACE model allows us to care for the whole person: mind, body, function, family, and community. Our goal is for every participant to feel seen, supported, and empowered to live with dignity and purpose.
To learn more about Element Care PACE services or explore support for a loved one, contact Element Care and ask how comprehensive, person-centered care can help.