Geropsychiatric unit, residency program work hand-in-hand

Published 5:45 pm Tuesday, July 11, 2023

MOULTRIE – A physician at Colquitt Regional Medical Center has shared insight on what one of the hospital’s newest inpatient units is observing in their patients and what families should pay attention to in their older loved ones.

Just one year ago, the hospital held a ribbon cutting for its Geropsychiatry Inpatient Behavioral Health Unit (BHU). The unit is Colquitt Regional Medical Center’s first inpatient mental health option, and its intended service is to provide short-term intensive treatment for elderly patients who suffer from acute psychiatric disorders, cognitive impairment and age-related physiological disabilities.

Lisa Rudolph-Watson, MD-FAPA, the unit’s medical director and the director of the Georgia South Psychiatry Residency Program, said this kind of unit is vital in an aging community like Colquitt County.

“Mr. [Jim] Matney [the president and CEO of Colquitt Regional Medical Center] really keeps an eye on the needs of the community and our region. One major area that we needed services for was in psychiatry. We know that our population is aging. We’re seeing more and more super seniors, if you will, people that are living well into their 80s and 90s,” Rudolph-Watson said in a phone interview July 7.

Those service considerations led to the founding of the Georgia South Psychiatry Residency Program, which provides medical school graduates more opportunities for training in the psychiatric specialty and provides patients with additional care in a high-demand field.

The geropsychiatry unit, which is located on the second floor of the hospital, houses 10 beds in four semi-private rooms and two private. The floor is equipped with a full team including a dedicated nurse, medication nurse, floor technicians, licensed clinical social worker level therapist and a case manager. The staff’s overall mission aims to help patients within the 55+ population regain and maintain their optimal level of health with reduced symptoms so they can return to their home environment, Rudolph-Watson said.

As people age, brain health issues may present in several ways; among them are dementia or early signs of Alzheimer’s disease.

“We do treat depression, anxiety and psychosis. Whatever the individual’s going through at that moment, and needing psychiatric help. A bulk of our patients do have dementia or early cognitive decline, and are coming in for that as well, especially if it’s affected their daily life and their functioning,” she explained.

The residency students have been able to take a more hands-on leadership role in the patients’ care and implement collaborative approach with the patients families.

“For the residents, I think they really enjoy and get a good experience, also working with families. In psychiatry, it is different because we certainly address the issues that’s going on with the patient, but it’s so important to have collaborative care with the family. We need to know the environment and the resources the person has. So the residents, they really take a good lead in family sessions, talking with families incorporating that whole level of care, too,” Rudolph-Watson said.

She advised people who feel they have someone who needs or would benefit for the unit’s level of service to be medically cleared through the emergency department due to the unit’s sole focus on psychiatry.

Interested individuals can call the hospital and inquire about the Geropsychiatry Inpatient Behavioral Health Unit, speak with a nurse on the unit or a physician referral. However, patients are generally admitted through the emergency department due to the medical testing.