OLDER people are less likely to seek mental health support due to stigma and ageist attitudes in healthcare, a new report warned today.

The International Longevity Centre UK (ILC) found that discrimination and “generational taboos” prevent many older people from accessing the care they need.

According to the report, some clinicians assume that depression is an inevitable part of ageing and therefore harder to treat.

Estimates suggest that only one in six older people with depression receive a diagnosis in Britain, they added.

Some healthcare facilities are also “not perceived by patients to be age-friendly” and sometimes older people “feel shame” when disclosing their symptoms.

“Stigma and generational taboos around mental health conditions can be a significant barrier to accessing treatment,” the authors of the report wrote.

They said that “internalised/externalised ageism is a barrier to mental health support.”

The report highlighted that while there has been significant focus on young people’s mental health, older people’s needs are often overlooked in public policy and research.

Despite evidence that older people benefit from talking therapies, they are given less access to these treatments compared to younger patients, it said.

The ILC called for better mental health support throughout all stages of life.

Report co-author Patrick Swain said: “Mental health has fallen short of physical health for far too long — from accessibility, to funding, to attention.

“That needs to change now.”

Last week, a damning report from the women and equalities committee concluded that ageism was “widespread and culturally embedded” in Britain.

National Pensioners Convention general secretary Jan Shortt said: “Older people may not seek help for their mental health, or indeed any other health-related issue if they have experienced ageist attitudes towards them and their condition.

“Mental health still holds a stigma for many and there is no doubt older people can suffer barriers to accessing services. It is quite common for them to be given to understand that whatever condition they are presenting, it is all down to their age.

“While we might be older and prone to certain health needs, we still have the right to be treated with dignity and respect. Ageing is not the same for everyone and older people are not an homogenous group — for some mental health is still a taboo subject. That’s why reaching out to them to seek support for their mental health needs to be done carefully to encourage them to make the next steps. But the question is, when they do seek support, will the right services still be available?”