By Larry Tucker

A Winnsboro native and her staff at UT Health Quitman are on a twofold mission of education and community involvement to fill a void in mental health services for older adults.
Winnsboro native and resident Crystal Lynn is program director of Senior Life Solutions, a new program for seniors at UT Quitman Health. Lynn is a registered nurse and has her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing.
“Our most significant problem is the stigma attached to Mental Health,” Lynn said. “We want people to know there is a safe place to receive professional care for a variety of services we offer.”
The Medical Director of the Program is Dr. Keri Lemmond.
“Dr. Lemmond is our Medical Director and oversees everything. She can meet monthly or sessions can occur more often as needed,” Lynn said.
Lemmond is a board-certified psychiatrist with more than 25 years’ clinical experience. She earned degrees from Texas A&M Health Science Center and completed her residency at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.
The program’s goal is to empower older adults to thrive mentally.
“Group sessions are available three times a week, three hours a session. Patients attend as many days as needed based on their individualized treatment plan and s ordered by the psychiatrist,” Lynn said. “Individual sessions are available as frequently as weekly with the therapist according to the patient’s needs.”
The program is hospital-based, but patients also can participate off campus using a phone or computer.
“Our services include a confidential comprehensive assessment, group therapy, individual therapy, and family therapy, medication management and after-care planning,” Lynn said. “Anyone can make a referral to our program including clinicians, family and friends. Participants can also make a self-referral.”
Therapy at the program is described as private, efficient, flexible and designed to meet the unique needs of older adults. Some of those life experiences needing the services at Senior Solutions can include: anxiety, depression, guilt, grief, caregiving fatigue or trauma. Others might have trouble coping with new or chronic health diagnoses and difficulty coping with major life events or transitions.
“Attitudes and the stigma of what mental health is and what health services can be provided are much better now than in the past, but we still have a long way to go to be able to fully serve people in need,” Lynn said. “We are trying our best to get the word out that we are here and we are ready to be of service to those in need in Wood County. There are 138 programs in the United States and, with our office here and a new clinic in Pittsburg today (July 8), we now have 10 centers here in Texas. To have a clinic it must be at a hospital with at least 26 beds and meet certain standards. There are those clinics with in-patient services, but ours is out-patient service.”
The center deals with more than just mental health.
“We take a holistic approach as we look at not just mental health, but family dynamics, social and economic dynamics, their support systems and their medical health. If your body is not healthy, sometimes your mind can suffer,” Lynn said.
For more information or to set up an appointment, call 903-763-6064. Medicare and insurance is accepted.