Transcript Age Friendly Cities and Communities

Age-Friendly Communities:
Messages from the Research
Pamela Fancey
Nova Scotia Centre on Aging
Mount Saint Vincent University
www.msvu.ca
Preventing Falls Together Conference
October 29, 2009
What is an age-friendly
community?
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Key premise - an agefriendly community
promotes active ageing.
Active ageing is “the
process of optimizing
opportunities for health,
participation and security
in order to enhance the
quality of life as people
age” (Active Ageing: A Policy
Framework, WHO, 2002).
Overview-Age-Friendly
Communities Work
33 cites
Research
Outcomes
Participatory Research
re advantages and barriers
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2.
Practical guides
Increased
awareness of
seniors’ needs
Implementation and
Action
Evaluate
Guiding Framework
10 rural/remote
communities
Research Background
Age-Friendly features
Age-Friendly barriers
Suggestions for improvement
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Outdoor spaces and buildings
Transportation
Housing
Respect and social inclusion
Social participation
Communication and information
Civic participation and employment
Community support and health services
Four Communities in
Guysborough County
Canso
Sherbrooke
Sunnyville
Town of Guysborough
4 focus groups, April-May 2007
41 seniors and caregivers
“When you go for a
walk, anybody that
can’t walk any
distance, it’d be nice
to have a bench.”
Outdoor Spaces & Buildings
Strengths:
•Buildings increasingly accessible
•Plenty of parks, walking trails
Barriers:
“Cross walks
signals are made
for Olympic
runners.” Halifax city
•Parks not wheelchair friendly
•Accessibility to public buildings hit-and-miss
•Lack of benches in public places (e.g., parks,
grocery stores, banks, pharmacies)
•Safety issues – lighting
•Lack of paved shoulders on country roads hinder
walking
Transportation
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Strengths
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One van service
Volunteer drivers (e.g.,friends - seniors)
Well ploughed streets in winter
Barriers
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Where have all the gas stations gone?
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distance and cost to access services
…going to and
from Halifax
costs you
hundreds of
dollars, if you
spend the
night…”
“...it’s 50 kms to
the next gas
station”.
e.g., specialists, denturists, opticians
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inconvenient appointment times (health care)
“…if it looks
winter weather
like snowflakes
today, I’m
night-time driving
scared to death
anxiety about town/city driving (senior drivers) to drive.”
Housing
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Lack of Housing Options
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e.g. assisted living, seniors’ apartments
Larger units needed (changing lifestyles)
Placement in LTC far from home “We pay $3000 a
Expenses
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maintenance
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Outmigration – shortage of labourers
Houses in disrepair (seniors helping seniors)
heating old homes
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year to stay
warm…”
NB: Hazards related to wood stoves
house insurance (many don’t have)
Isolation of many homes
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“When we first
[moved] here, all
[my husband] did
was go to fires.
Constantly, for
years…”
Power outages (be prepared in winter!)
Going up and down stairs/fear of falling
“We need accessible
2-bedroom
apartments-no steps!
Or very few steps.”
Summary
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Idea of viewing our surroundings through an
“age-friendly” lens is new but critical to
support persons to age in place
Falls prevention work very relevant
Increased knowledge and awareness are key
Some are very simple changes
Others more complex and will require more
investment of time and money
Need to learn from other communities and
understand to what extent actions make a
difference
Acknowledgements
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Participants – seniors, caregivers, service providers
Advisory Committee
Community contacts/liaisons
NSCA Research team – Brenda Hattie, Dr. Janice
Keefe
Halifax Regional Municipality
Nova Scotia Department of Seniors