Individuals are living longer than ever and staying active later in their lives. This increase in life expectancy is contributing to a rise in dementia-related illnesses across the country. Unfortunately, there is a severe shortage of nurses and nurse practitioners who are specialized in diagnosing and treating geriatric neuropsychiatric illnesses such as dementia.

To bridge this gap, Saint Mary’s College has partnered with GuideStar Eldercare to create a geriatric neuropsychiatry certificate for advanced practice nurses. These initiatives equip graduates with specialized skills to provide older adult patients with the care and attention they need to lead healthy, independent lives.

GuideStar and Saint Mary’s Doctor of Nursing Practice Partnership 

GuideStar and Saint Mary’s College believe that the traditional model of providing care to individuals diagnosed with dementia only addresses part of the underlying problem. Too often, providers find the symptom and treat only that symptom. The GuideStar program at Saint Mary’s trains nurse practitioners to properly diagnose and identify age-related illnesses, and treat their patients using a combination of neurology, neuropsychiatry and gerontology. 

GuideStar Eldercare uses neurology-based behavioral health interventions to develop effective person-centered approaches to treat a wide range of psychological and psychiatric brain disorders. When you join our certificate program in geriatric neuropsychiatry, you’ll learn to approach neurological illnesses through a multidisciplinary lens that looks at the patient as an individual with unique medical needs. This specialized training will help you improve not only patients’ lives but the healthcare system as a whole.

An Advanced Certificate to Address Unmet Needs

GuideStar Eldercare is at the vanguard of providing cutting-edge, research-backed geriatric care around the country. Working nurse practitioners who pursue the Geriatric Neuropsychiatry certificate, or Saint Mary’s nursing students who add a geriatric neuropsychiatry specialty to their DNP, benefit from the vast built-in network of facilities that work with GuideStar Eldercare — including Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Texas. 

With the high demand for nurse practitioners and the need for professionals specially trained in this innovative field, this means that this advanced certificate can lead to many career opportunities around the U.S.

Learn more about what you can do with a Doctor of Practice in Nursing.