Aging News

NEW publication from the Federal Interagency Forum on Aging Related Statistics
Older Americans 2008: Key Indicators of Well Being
April 23, 2008 - A collaborative endeavor involving 15 federal agencies, the report presents 38 indicators of health and well-being (including financial resources, health risks, behavior and literacy) derived from over a dozen national data sources, most with trends of at least 10 years. Descriptions of the data sources are provided, along with references for a large number of other data resources (most of them available online).
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Americans living longer, enjoying greater health and prosperity, but important disparities remain
April 23, 2008 - Average life expectancy continues to increase, and today’s older Americans enjoy better health and financial security than any previous generation. However, rates of gain are inconsistent between the genders and across age brackets, income levels and racial and ethnic groups. Some critical disparities also exist between older Americans and older people in other industrialized countries. These and other trends are reported in Older Americans 2008: Key Indicators of Well-Being, a unique, comprehensive look at aging in the United States from the Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics.
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Not your father's emergency response system
How technology can aid seniors, caregivers in their own homes
April 23, 2008 - BOSTON (MarketWatch) -- Older Americans and their family caregivers are at long last warming to the notion of using technology to achieve their respective goals. Older Americans want to age in place and their family caregivers -- be they long-distance or not -- want some peace of mind that their adult parents and loved ones are safe.
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The oldest Americans are also the happiest, research finds
April 23, 2008 - It turns out the golden years really are golden. Eye-opening new research finds the happiest Americans are the oldest, and older adults are more socially active than the stereotype of the lonely senior suggests. The two go hand-in-hand: Being social can help keep away the blues.
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Tectonic Shifts in the Health Information Economy
April 23, 2008 - In a recent shift in the health information landscape, large corporations are seeking an integral and transformative role in the management of health care information. The mechanism by which this transformation is likely to take place is through the creation of computer platforms that will enable patients to manage health data in personally controlled health records (PCHRs). Two types of large corporations are involved. Technology companies such as Google and Microsoft see business opportunities,1 whereas Fortune 100 companies in their role as employers2,3 see efficiencies and cost savings when patients can securely store, access, augment, and share their own copy of electronic health information. Though this shift in the locus of control of health information is driven largely by a need to provide assistance with clinical care processes, it will also profoundly affect the biomedical research enterprise. We illustrate this shift with a two-part scenario in which a patient fills her PCHR with data from multiple sites of care and then participates in research.
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Select Articles from the RWJF-Sponsored Issue of Health Affairs "Disparities in Health: Expanding the Focus"
March 31, 2008 - Pay special attention this week to the new March/April issue of the journal Health Affairs. The entire issue, which RWJF sponsored, is devoted to disparities. The findings presented here—and they are striking—reveal in specific detail from a range of important perspectives how factors such as social determinants, disparities in the health care system, and the lack of diversity in the health professions coalesce to undermine the quality and fairness of our health and health care.
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Strong community networks linked to fewer recurring heart problems, new study finds
February 27, 2008 - This is the first study to demonstrate a link between community social capital and prognosis following heart disease," said study co-author Dr. Ichiro Kawachi, professor of social epidemiology in the Department of Society, Development and Human Health at the Harvard School of Public Health. "Other research has linked social capital to health outcomes, but most of these studies have been cross-sectional, and therefore difficult to draw conclusions about cause-and-effect relationships. The findings of this study take us in the right direction."
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The Building Blocks of Personal Health Records
February 26, 2008 - There is a great deal of interest in exploring the potential of personal health records (PHR). Google was one of the latest organizations to throw its hat in the ring. Such efforts aim to move patient data—such as prescription history, medical condition information and allergy data—into an electronic medical profile to empower patients and provide them more control over their health care. But with a multitude of efforts to collaborate on the development of online heath records, what are the common functional building blocks for designing PHRs?
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Not a nursing home, but a nurturing home
February 26, 2008 - Instead of a nursing station, the focus of activity at Castagna House is a homelike kitchen with double ovens and a long wooden dining room table. The people who live here aren't called residents or patients, but "elders." Those who care for them are not nurse's assistants or aides; each is called a shahbaz, a Persian word that means "royal falcon." And antiseptic corridors are replaced with short, sunlit passageways leading to private bedrooms, a whirlpool bath, a living room with a fireplace and landscaped outdoor areas. It doesn't sound like a nursing home, and for good reason. This unusual living arrangement is called a Green House - a progressive new way to care for the elderly in their last years of life. While licensed as nursing homes, Green Houses provide care in a home, not an institutional, setting.
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Revamp for NIH grants
US funding body receives recommendations for improving its peer-review process.
February 26, 2008 - Scientists applying to the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) for grants could be accelerated through the painful peer-review process under recommendations proposed on 21 February aimed at overhauling the decades-old system.
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The Web gives boomer caregivers a boost
Sites help them manage meds, schedules, family reminders
February 26, 2008 - One in four US families are currently juggling caregiving responsibilities, according to the National Alliance for Caregiving. And that has brought a surge in Web-based service companies...
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No time to relax: States want new retirees' experience
February 26, 2008 - The wave of baby boomers hitting retirement age threatens to create such a void in the workforce that states are crafting policies and programs to keep older Americans working and volunteering.
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Computers 'spot Alzheimer's fast'
Computers can diagnose Alzheimer's disease faster and more accurately than experts, research suggests.
February 26, 2008 - University College London researchers say their work may help ensure patients are diagnosed earlier, increasing the chances of effective treatment. Their study, published in the journal Brain, found computers can identify brain damage caused by Alzheimer's with an accuracy as high as 96%.
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Health Compass - Navigating Research information on Health and Aging
February 8, 2008 - This "how to" program is designed to help you better understand health information and research on aging. Health Compass Shows You How To:
- Find health information on the Internet
- Evaluate the reliability of health information, product claims, and current research findings
- Act on making informed decisions about your health
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NYC Department for the Aging (DFTA) Launches Modernization Effort
January 29, 2008 - Commissioner Edwin Méndez-Santiago, LCSW, today announced that the Department is leading a far-reaching effort to strengthen and improve the services seniors receive today and to prepare for the growing and diverse needs of tomorrow’s seniors. By 2030 one-fifth of New York City’s population will be over the age of 60, with seniors outnumbering school-aged children. In response to this "longevity revolution," the Department has spearheaded a year long consultative process with aging network providers, advocates, elected officials and community leaders to re-envision the future of aging services, a system that has not been re-examined since its inception in the late 1960s. This modernization effort will focus on the Department’s three core services, case management, home delivered meals and senior centers.
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Institute of Medicine Recommends New National Program to Evaluate Effectiveness of Health Care Products and Services and End Confusion About Which Work Best
January 29, 2008 - A new report from the Institute of Medicine offers a blueprint for a national program to assess the effectiveness of clinical services and to provide credible, unbiased information about what really works in health care. The report recommends that Congress direct the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to establish a program with the authority, expertise, and resources necessary to set priorities for evaluating clinical services and to conduct systematic reviews of the evidence.
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Elderly rely more on family for care: National policy lacking as ranks of seniors grow
The Buffalo News
January 14, 2008 - For generations, Americans have depended on nursing homes to care for them in old age. But as the population rapidly ages, more care is shifting from institutions to homes and senior residences, and more responsibility is shifting to families.
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New Center for Creativity and Aging Inaugurated at Ithaca College
December 19, 2007 - ITHACA, NY—Giving new meaning to “retirement,” Martha Graham danced until she was 75, Picasso painted into his 80s, and Antonio Stradivari was making his world-famous violins at 92. In order to better understand and explore the relationship between creativity and aging, especially as it applies to the arts, Ithaca College will open the Linden Center for Creativity and Aging, established with an endowment from alumni couple Jay ’72 and Judith ’73 Linden.
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Training Guide from the National Institute on Aging Helps Older Adults Find Health Information Online
December 19, 2007 - Health issues are a vital concern for older adults, and surveys show that most of those who go online search for health and medical information. However, since only 34 percent of people age 65 and older are online, the majority of older adults are missing out on valuable health information. To broaden the numbers of older adults able to search for and find reliable health information online, the National Institute on Aging (NIA) has developed a free training curriculum for those who teach and work with older adults. This Toolkit for Trainers is now available on NIHSeniorHealth.gov, a senior-friendly Web site developed by the NIA and the National Library of Medicine (NLM), components of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
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Financial Sustainability for Evidence-Based Programs (New!)
November 28, 2007 - This document highlights some of the findings from a recent survey of people who are currently implementing, or have had experience working with, evidence-based healthy aging programs. In it, you will find some key ideas and tips for states and their partners to consider, many of which may help increase the likelihood of financial sustainability for evidence-based programs.
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AGing Integrated Database (AGID)
November 27, 2007 - The AGing Integrated Database (AGID) is an on-line query system based on AoA-related data files and surveys, and includes population characteristics from the Census Bureau for comparison purposes. The system allows users to produce customized tables in a step-by-step process and output the results in print or spreadsheet form. To begin your query, please select the desired database and follow the system prompts.
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$49 million federal grant to Weill Cornell will create center to make latest medical research available to New Yorkers
Cornell Chronicle Online
October 22, 2007 - In a major new effort to translate medical research into practical and accessible treatment, Weill Cornell Medical College (WCMC) will lead a new Clinical and Translational Science Center, creating a network for biomedical collaboration on Manhattan's Upper East Side. The center will be funded through a $49 million Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the largest federal grant ever awarded to WCMC.
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Systematic Review of Current Disparities Research Interventions Identifies Successful Strategies for Reducing Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care
Complete body of reviewed research available through new interactive tool.
October 22, 2007 - A team of researchers from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Finding Answers: Disparities Research for Change initiative launch a publicly available, interactive, online tool that allows users to search for interventions.
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Mapping the Growth of Older America: Seniors and Boomers in the Early 21st Century
The Brookings Institution • Living Cities Census Series
July 18, 2007 - Growing public attention is focused on the national implications of the impending “age tsunami” about to hit America’s older population. After minimal growth in the 1990s, and modest gains during the current decade, the U.S. senior population will begin to mushroom when the leading edge of the huge baby boom generation—born between 1946 and 1965—reaches age 65 in the year 2011.
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