Alessandra MerizziINRCA Istituto Nazionale di Ricovero e Cura per Anziani | INRCA · Centre for Socio-Economic Research on Ageing
Alessandra Merizzi
Gestalt Psychotherapy, Clinical Psychology
About
23
Publications
4,585
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57
Citations
Introduction
I am a Gestalt Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologist currently working at my therapy space "Studio Dr.ssa Merizzi" and as researcher at the Istituto Nazionale di Ricovero e Cura per Anziani (INRCA). I also collaborate with the Manchester Gestalt Centre (as psychotherapist). I am an active member of Italian, UK and EU associations: SIPG, FPOP, GPTI and EAGT.
Additional affiliations
September 2014 - present
Manchester Gestalt Centre
Position
- Gestalt Psychotherapist
November 2015 - May 2022
Position
- Medical Professional
Description
- Memory Assessment and Treatment Service
Publications
Publications (23)
Psychotherapy is one of the evidence-based clinical interventions for the treatment of depression in older adults with dementia. Randomised controlled trials are often the first methodological choice to gain evidence, yet they are not applicable to a wide range of humanistic psychotherapies. Amongst all, the efficacy of the Gestalt therapy (GT) is...
The chapter presents some reflections on the application of Gestalt Therapy (GT) to the work with older people (OP), including a view on the challenges brought by the Covid-19 pandemic. To begin with, the changes that can occur in the process of the self in relation to the environment will be analysed: what happens to the id, ego and personality se...
Purpose
The SOUND method offers an innovative blended intervention based on music circle-activities and cognitive stimulation approaches which was co-designed by musicians, health professionals, older people with dementia, family caregivers and researchers, for its application in dementia settings. The purpose of the paper is to describe the detail...
Background
Decisions about driving for individuals living with dementia (ILWD) can be challenging. There are limited evidence‐based person‐centred interventions in the United Kingdom that support decisions about transitioning to not driving or guidelines for developing decision aids for ILWD. This study aimed to understand the important features of...
The purpose of this scoping review is to investigate the value of creative arts therapies in healthy older adults. This article aims to shed light on current knowledge concerning the effectiveness of art therapies (ATs) for the prevention of common age-related conditions using the definition of art therapy provided by the American Art Therapy Assoc...
Background
The positive effects of active and passive music activities on older people with dementia are well and largely documented by the literature. Nevertheless, the use of music as a non-pharmacological intervention is not so common both in private and public older people care facilities because in-home staff have no competencies for deliverin...
Retirement is a critical step in older adults’ lives, so it is important to motivate them to stay physically active, mentally healthy, and socially connected in the transition from work to retirement, including through digital health coaching programs. This study aims to: evaluate the impact of a digital coaching intervention to enhance three healt...
Psychotherapy is one of the evidence-based clinical interventions for the treatment of depression in older adults with dementia. Randomized Controlled Trials are often the first methodological choice to gain evidence, yet they are not applicable to a wide range of humanistic psychotherapies. Amongst all, the efficacy of the Gestalt therapy (GT) is...
The field of childhood trauma with its long-term effects on the brain and cognition has been growing recently. Clinical neuroscience is making a major contribution to the development of an understanding of the link between early life maltreatment experiences and alterations in the brain. A further step is the attempt to observe and recognise possib...
Il tema dell’invecchiamento è un tema sempre più di rilievo nelle società moderne. Inoltre, l’avvento della pandemia da Covid-19 ha rivolto i proiettori verso la terza età ed il lato più fragile di essa.
In campo psicologico, numerosi sono stati gli sviluppi teorico-applicativi negli ultimi decenni, dalla psico-gerontologia, alle neuroscienze clin...
Background:
Retirement is recognized as a factor influencing the ageing process. Today, virtual health coaching systems can play a pivotal role in supporting older adults' active and healthy ageing. This study wants to answer two research questions: (1) What are the user requirements of a virtual coach (VC) based on an Embodied Conversational Agen...
BACKGROUND
The ageing worldwide population involves an increase of multiple chronic diseases and the consequent demand for healthcare services by older people, thus challenging the healthcare systems’ sustainability and older people’s quality of life. In order to postpone older adults’ need for care, the promotion of healthy ageing is a key action...
The Dementia and Driving Decision Aid (DDDA) is a booklet designed to support people living with dementia in making a decision about driving in collaboration with their health professionals and family. It was originally developed and tested in Australia and New Zealand with the co-participation of people living with dementia. Results showed that th...
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore how supervision is applied in the context of National Health Service services for older adults, with particular regard to the profession of clinical psychology and psychotherapy.
Design/methodology/approach – The clinical supervision theories that are considered in this exploration are the Seven-Eye...
At the IV Gestalt Research Conference, held in Santiago, Chile (29 May–1 June 2019), participants shared information about Gestalt therapy and research from their respective countries. We thought it was so interesting to hear about the practice of Gestalt and the state of Gestalt therapy research around the world that we have published some of thes...
This chapter is the reflective fruit of a workshop that has been run during the UKAGP Conference 2015 and a following poster presented during the EAGT/AAGT Conference 2016. I discuss the meaning of the word “seduction” and how this aspect can be seen in Gestalt Therapy, starting from Marilena Menditto’s definition of seduction. I then explore the w...
In modern times, globally, many people with dementia are also drivers with all the challenges that this implies. The Dementia and Driving Decision Aid (DDDA) is a booklet designed to support people with dementia in making their own decision about driving cessation (or retirement). It was originally developed and tested in Australia and New Zealand...
Dementia care is an important aspect affecting the quality of life of people living with dementia. There are many studies that test the efficacy of methods of care in order to support and even increase the quality of life of dementia patients (e.g. Gridley et al., 2016; Thyrian et al., 2017). A novel approach developed by Beville (2002) called Virt...
The Poster will present some reflective points about the connection between fear and seduction in the therapy room. We all know about the seduction link to sexual interest, about its manipulative power as well as the importance of being aware of seduction on a countertransference level. However, the sexual aspect of seduction is not the single one...
The Poster will present our project on Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and its developments. Oldham Memory Assessment and Treatment Service provides a good range of services for people with dementia and their carers, but nothing has been created for people with a diagnosis of MCI until now. Aware of this lack, we decided to run a focus group for MC...
L’invecchiamento umano è un processo al centro di molti studi in questi ultimi
decenni. L’interesse è nato dal prolungamento di vita media della popolazione nei
Paesi industrializzati, un traguardo raggiunto dopo grandi scoperte e cambiamenti
nella nostra storia, ma che porta con se sia aspetti positivi che negativi. Infatti la
situazione demografi...
Questions
Questions (3)
I would like to use the Geriatric Depression Scale to investigate the efficacy of a therapy treatment on depressive symptoms in people with dementia. I am aware of the cut-off and score range of the GDS-30 (cut-off 9/30, mild depression 10–19, severe depression 20–30), but what is the level of change that needs to be observed in order to say that the pre-post score difference is clinically meaningful?
The sample will consist of individuals with mild depression.
Many thanks for any help.
I am a bilingual professional working as an assistant psychologist in a memory service. I have found several research articles about administering the Boston Naming Test to bilingual patients, but none about bilingual professionals administering it.
Thanks for your help,
Alessandra
I am working in a mental health semi-residential service - adolescent unit, using both Group Analysis and Gestalt Therapy. We are planning a research to understand the connection between the group therapy efficacy, the group climate and the group composition (the partecipants' psychopathology).
