Whilst there is increasing acceptance that social inequalities have implications
for mental health, there is minimal acknowledgement of their effects on the
development and treatment of mental ill health in older people. This paper
focuses on older women, as they are the majority sufferers of mental illness in
later life, and are particularly vulnerable to the cumulative effects of lifelong
and age-related inequalities. The authors, who draw upon literature from the
fields of gerontology and mental health, argue that for effective care to be
developed, older women's mental ill health needs to be seen within the context
of their past and present experience of social inequalities. Evidence particularly
relates to socio-economic disadvantages as well as to the consequences of
discrimination. It is argued that psychological vulnerability is further
compounded by the gendered effects of social policy, and by a care system
which constructs mental health needs as unrelated to oppression, and
dislocated from their economic, social and historical roots. Finally, the authors
outline the key components of a care and service system which takes account
of social inequalities, and which accords centrality to the experiences, views
and opinions of older women with mental health problems.