Are older Americans financially prepared for their retirement years? Do they feel optimistic about the future? Several recent news articles have tackled the issue, but with all of the contradictory statistics its hard to draw a clear picture. A recent telephone poll conduced by USA Today in partnership with UnitedHealthcare and the National Council on Aging suggests that many older Americans are feeling optimistic about their lives and the future.
This fact sheet produced by Kansas State University provides an overview of easy and inexpensive home modifications that can aid older adults planning to age in place. Simple modifications like adding grab bars and removing throw rugs can help to increase safety within the home. Other suggestions include; adding lighting to stairs and hallways, rearranging dishes in easier to reach storage, raising beds so that they are easier to get into and out of, and adding motion sensors at exterior doors.
An article in the Washington Post highlighted the important benefits of aging-in-place, undertaking home modifications, and joining a “Village” group. The article profiles Bill Cousins, 88, who realized that he was having trouble moving around his home. Cousins installed an elevator, increased the maneuvering space in his kitchen, added a ramp to the back of the house, and lowered light switches to an accessible location. Cousins also joined a “Village” group run mainly by volunteers who help him by providing concierge services, such as as taking him to doctor’s appointments and checking in on him from time to time.
This report by the Milken Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan economic think tank, explores the best cities for aging in the US. The report looked at 359 metro areas across the US and generated a composite ranking for each, based on eight sub-components (general indicators, health care, wellness, living arrangements, transportation/convenience, financial well-being, employment/education, and community engagement). Additionally, they recognized that a 65-year-old’s needs likely differ from those of an 80-year-old. By using the same data but weighting the indicators differently, two indexes were created, one for ages 65 through 79 and another for age 80 and up. For instance education/employment was considered to play a bigger role for residents ages 65-79 than for those who were 80+. Their top picks might surprise you.
If you are planning to age in place, have you considered how you will combat loneliness? A recent study conducted by Cornell and published inPsychology and Aging explores the adverse effects of loneliness on health and aging. According to the study, loneliness produces changes in the body that mimic the aging process and increase the risk of heart disease.
Researchers measured cardiovascular reactivity and recovery in 91 young adults (aged 18 to 30) and 91 older adults (aged 65 to 80) who were asked to give a speech and do mental arithmetic in a lab setting. They assessed each person’s level of loneliness before the tasks, and took systolic and diastolic blood pressure measurements before, during, and after the tasks. Lead author Anthony Ong distinguishes between the temporary pains of acute loneliness, which can motivate us to create or repair our social connections, and chronic loneliness that is more likely to cause health problems over time.
The Monitor has a wonderful interview with Wendy Rogers, PhD, director of the Human Factors and Aging Laboratory at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, describing how she understands the process of designing and developing technology for older adults. Rogers talks about the labratory’s “Aware Home,” a house-like environment where they can test out new technologies, like robots and health monitoring systems. She goes on to explain how decreases in motor control, as well as perceptual and conceptual abilities need to be taken into account when designing for older adults. While younger users can sometimes compensate for a product’s or website’s poor design, this is harder for older users. Rogers explains that designing something to be easily used by older adults usually results in a product that is easier for everyone to use. Rogers also speaks about how some companies are starting to recognize the older adults as a market that they need to pay attention to and design for.
Read the article “Design for all ages” about designing technology for older adults
The Monitor has a wonderful interview with Wendy Rogers, PhD, director of the Human Factors and Aging Laboratory at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, describing how she understands the process of designing and developing technology for older adults. Rogers talks about the labratory’s “Aware Home,” a house-like environment where they can test out new technologies, like robots and health monitoring systems. She goes on to explain how decreases in motor control, as well as perceptual and conceptual abilities need to be taken into account when designing for older adults. While younger users can sometimes compensate for a product’s or website’s poor design, this is harder for older users. Rogers explains that designing something to be easily used by older adults usually results in a product that is easier for everyone to use. Rogers also speaks about how some companies are starting to recognize the older adults as a market that they need to pay attention to and design for.
emote monitoring and telehealthcare are topics that often get raised when people discuss the future of the Aging In Place movement, and this app from Phillips may be a sign of things to come. The Vital Signs Camerauses the standard camera in your iPad or iPhone to monitor both your heart rate and breathing rate. The app’s software is able to recognize small changes in the color of your face to measure your heart rate with beat-to beat accuracy. Likewise, the camera tracks the movements of your chest to measure your exact breathing rate. The app can also create tables and graphs of a user’s history, helping to make sense of the data gathered and reveal any long-term trends. The newest version of the app can even monitor two people at the same time.
Click here for more information about Vital Signs Camera App on YouTube
As Amy Levner, AARP’s manager of education on livable communities, explains, “Universally Designed houses and livable communities must be connected. Universally designed houses enhance mobility and quality of life inside the home and livable communities do the same thing outside of the home.” Livable communities coordinate housing, transportation and land use in order to help people access goods, services and social engagement.
Livable communities’ transportation needs are often met by “complete streets” that have been designed to work well for all users – automobile drivers, bicyclists, pedestrians and users of public transportation. This is particularly important for older adults, since about 20 percent of seniors do not drive. Complete streets include things like well-maintained sidewalks, traffic calming practices that encourage cars to move at safe speeds, buffers between pedestrians and cars, frequent and well-marked street crossings, interconnected streets that offer efficient walking routes, raised medians to provide refuge for pedestrian curb ramps, audible as well as visual street crossing signals, bike lanes, trees for shade, places to sit and rest, storefronts and parks abutting the sidewalk instead of empty lots or parking lots and plentiful nighttime lighting.
Of course, complete streets only benefit residents if the community has destinations that people want to visit. Most people will walk 1500 feet (about a quarter of a mile or 1/2 kilometer) to reach shopping or transit. Mixed-use zoning that includes both residential and commercial areas can ensure that a variety of retail, health and education destinations are within walking distance. Livable communities also often have a center where people can gather, whether it’s a main street or a public space. “Placemaking” initiatives can create destinations like parks, farmers markets, and even temporary arts and entertainment events where residents can meet and interact. Those curious about how many amenities are within walking distance of where they live can visit www.walkscore. com to find out how well their neighborhood stacks up.
Livable communities benefit older adults, children and teens, and anyone who wants the option of cheaper, greener and healthier modes of transport. Complete streets are safer for all users, and cut down on both gridlock and pollution. Retail stores benefit from the increase in foot traffic, and communities benefit from the sales tax on locally bought goods. Property values increase $500-$3,000 for every one-point increase in a neighborhood’s walk score. Livable communities can also support healthier and happier residents. A 2009 study revealed that adults living in walkable neighborhoods were at less risk of being obese or overweight. A 2012 study compared polling data on happiness from 10 international cities, and found that “cities that provide easy access to convenient public transportation and to cultural and leisure amenities promote happiness.”
Interested in making your community more livable? Consider organizing a “walking audit” of your community to help residents identify concerns, envision solutions and take action. To learn more about walking audits and livable communities see the resources listed below:
AARP’s Livable Communities Digital Hub
As baby boomers begin tackling aging in place, they are realizing the importance of community in maintaining one’s health, wellness, and independence. Some seniors are choosing co-housing, where a group of people intentionally create and maintain a community. In most co-housing communities the residences, often single family homes or condos, are owned privately and public spaces like gardens and meeting houses are owned and maintained collectively. Most co-housing communities are multi-generational, but there are some that are dedicated to seniors, such as the Elderberry Senior Co-housing Community in North Carolina.
Another option is the “Naturally Occurring Retirement Community” or village model, which originated in Boston’s Beacon Hill Village. Under the village model, a group of seniors who already happen to live in the same neighborhoodform a non-profit membership organization to provide access to services that support their goal of remaining at home as long as possible. These services include things like “concierge services,” one-stop shopping for transportation, home-care, house maintenance, medical, and care-management services.
Some seniors, especially single women, are choosing to move in together. This allows them to split the costs of living, provide support to each other, and remain social while aging in place. The legalities of two or more friends buying a house together or caring for each other through a progressive illness can prove challenging, but some senior women are finding that the benefits of living with friends far outweigh the difficulties.