Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, the Surgeon General identified loneliness as a significant public health problem. Since the onset of the pandemic many of us have been hunkered down with greatly reduced in person contact. Physical distancing does not inevitably lead to social isolation. This series of sessions will give attendees an opportunity to discuss how they are staying connected with family and friends. In addition there will be discussion of how to stay safe and deal with the anxiety over catching a potentially serious disease.
Dr. Ben Liptzin is Professor of Psychiatry Emeritus at Tufts University School of Medicine. For 25 years he was Chair of Psychiatry at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, MA. Prior to that he was Director of Geriatric Psychiatry at McLean Hospital in Belmont, MA and Director of the Geriatric Education Center at Harvard Medical School. He received the Jack Weinberg Award in Geriatric Psychiatry from the American Psychiatric Association and the Distinguished Faculty Award from Tufts. Dr. Liptzin is a graduate of Yale College and the University of Rochester, School of Medicine. He has served on the Board of the American Psychiatric Association, the American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry, the Alzheimer’s Association of Massachusetts.