TPC Journal V8, Issue 2 - FULL ISSUE

110 The Professional Counselor | Volume 8, Issue 2 Illness Coordinating Committee; ISMICC) recently recommended inclusion of counselors within Medicare (National Board for Certified Counselors, n.d.). At the state and local level, members of the counseling profession should forge partnerships with gerontology professionals. For example, advocacy occurs when professional counselors and counselor educators make connections with members of the local area agency on aging, directors of local assisted living or skilled nursing facilities, or state policymakers who are responsible for budgetary and policy decisions related to aging. These partnerships are mutually beneficial; they provide members of the counseling profession with increased exposure to the diverse needs of older adults in their communities, and they educate local gerontology professionals about the range of mental health services that counselors provide. Additionally, building interprofessional connections may lead to research opportunities that can improve the care received by older adults. Counteracting Ageism Through Research In spite of the numerous studies indicating that ageism has detrimental effects on older adults, there are currently very few studies that demonstrate the prevalence and impact of ageism within the counseling profession. For instance, research on in-session dynamics between counselors and much older clients could shed light on the ways in which age is broached in a counseling session. Additionally, research could focus on the benefits of professional counseling for older adult clients, as well as the effectiveness of novel interventions that are grounded in counseling theories or wellness (Fullen & Gorby, 2016; Fullen et al., in press). For instance, the development and validation of a wellness-based approach to counseling older adults might mitigate mental health issues or internalized ageism among older clients (Myers & Sweeney, 2005), and it would serve as additional evidence for the necessity of adding counselors as Medicare providers. At the institutional level, more research is needed to understand the extent to which counselor training programs address ageism, and in which curricular contexts. It is important to understand which pedagogical strategies are most effective, whether these impacts persist over time, and how well training programs make inroads with local agencies that work with older adults. Research into advocacy efforts related to Medicare reimbursement may also advance the profession. Although Medicare reimbursement is described as a priority for the counseling profession, there is currently little research on counselors’ knowledge about Medicare or participation in Medicare advocacy. Counteracting Ageism Through Counseling Practice Finally, it is important to consider how counselors might resist ageism within their counseling practice. Because of the heterogeneity of older adults, counseling services should be tailored to the unique needs of each client. Given that ageism has the potential to influence how older clients are conceptualized by counselors, it is important for counselors to reflect on their own beliefs about aging as well as their assumptions about the ability of older clients to grow and change. Many counselors are not familiar with the wide range of mental health interventions that have been empirically validated with older adults (Myers & Harper, 2004). For example, the SAMHSA-HRSA Center for Integrated Health Solutions (n.d.) provides numerous resources related to providing behavioral health services to older adults. These resources address issues such as evidence-based treatments for late life depression, preventing suicide in older adults, screening for substance misuse, and assessing cognitive functioning. Given the growing interest in wellness-oriented services for older adults, SAMHSA also provides evidence-based resources related to health promotion and integrated care. Programs that focus on