Abstract
Compared to their heterosexual and cisgender peers, older adults (OA) identifying as LGBT+ experience increased levels of emotional distress and associated mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety and panic. Additionally, due to generational effects such as historical legal and medical discrimination, LGBT+ OAs face additional barriers to accessing mental health services. The OA pathway within Cumbria, Northumberland and Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation trust (CNTW) works clinically with LGBT+ OAs within the community, care and inpatient settings. The trust delivers LGBT+ awareness and ally training, however, the experiences and attitudes of clinical staff have not been previously explored. Therefore the current evaluation used qualitative methodology and thematic analysis to examine staff confidence and experiences working with this population. Following analysis five themes with multiple subordinate themes were identified; (1) staff emotions and thoughts; (2) compassionate attitudes; (3) awareness of LGBT+ history; (4) adaptations to practice; (5) support for staff. The themes informed a model of ‘best practice working with LGBT+ OAs’ and service recommendations for training, resources and signposting, and LGBT+ specific supervision.
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