1. Build organizational capacity to integrate physical activity opportunities into programs and services for adults.
2. Promote hospital-to-home discharge planning and transition support services.
3. Provide leadership for a county-wide Aging Services Collaborative to address service gaps, policy and advocacy, and collaborative fund development.
4. Promote support for caregivers.
5. Support and promote community engagement opportunities or older adults.
6. Provide nutrition programs to support the needs of older adults.

 

1. Build organizational capacity to integrate physical activity opportunities into programs and services for adults.  

Physical activity is essential to the health of older adults. Yet there is insufficient expertise and capacity to provide best practice physical activity programs in the older adult and fitness service sectors. This results in a lack of programs to effectively meet the diverse needs of older adults. Older adults who do not engage in recommended levels of physical activity are at increased risk for falls, chronic conditions, and lower quality of life. To help reverse this trend, The Health Trust is partnering with organizations to disseminate the Healthy Steps Guide on physical activity and falls prevention for older adults and funding key organizations to increase physical activity best practice programming for older adults. By pursuing these approaches, The Health Trust aims to:

• Increase organizational capacity to provide effective physical activity programming;
• Increase in physical activity among older adults;
• Decrease rates of overweight and obesity and chronic disease among older adults;
• Decrease falls and isolation and depression and increase social connections.

 

2. Promote hospital-to-home discharge planning and transition support services.

The transition from hospital to home is often a critical turning point for older adults, potentially precipitating decline in physical and mental health and unnecessary hospital readmissions if they don’t receive adequate discharge planning in the hospital and support services when they return home. Cultural backgrounds and needs are often not considered when older adults are sent home from the hospital. To help support appropriate transitions, The Health Trust is reviewing best practices and current local efforts for Hospital to Home transitions to identify a particular approach or model to support. The Health Trust will also provide grant funding for the identified approach or model, with an emphasis on evidence-based programs that focus on culturally competent enhanced discharge planning and/or community support services. In doing this work, The Health Trust aims to:

• Decrease unnecessary rehospitalizations;
• Decrease isolation and depression among older adults;
• Decrease health care costs;
• Increase the capacity of older adults to remain in their homes and community.

 

3. Provide leadership for a county-wide Aging Services Collaborative to address service gaps, policy and advocacy, and collaborative fund development.

Unfortunately, within Silicon Valley there has traditionally been a lack of leadership and strategic coordination to ensure an effective continuum of services for older adults to achieve their optimal health and be able to age in place. Each service sector serves a different need for the older adult, which results in service fragmentation. Services may be unavailable and/or unaffordable due to policies that restrict eligibility and reimbursement. To help reverse this trend, The Health Trust is developing and implementing an Aging Services Workplan, including policy and communications objectives as well as providing leadership, infrastructure and staffing for the Aging Services Collaborative (ASC), a network of over 80 organizations who serve older adults. The Health Trust is also raising funds to support the work of the ASC. As a result of these efforts, The Health Trust aims to increase the coordination and efficiency among organizations that serve older adults and improve access to services among older adults.

 

4. Promote support for caregivers.

Most adults (78%) receive long-term care at home and rely exclusively on family and friends for assistance. Caregivers are usually not prepared to provide care in the home and may not be aware of or know how to use the services available in the community. In Santa Clara County, one-fourth of seniors are also caregivers. A lack of training and support for caregivers is associated with poor health outcomes for both caregivers and recipients. Caregivers have higher rates of chronic conditions (including depression) than non-caregivers, and caregiving can increase mortality risks. To help support caregivers, The Health Trust is establishing a Caregiver Network of professional providers (as a team of the ASC) that will coordinate and promote training, resources and quality standards for caregivers through a clearinghouse. The Health Trust in partnership with the ASC will also conduct a coordinated outreach campaign to raise awareness about caregiver needs and resources and the important role they play in society. The Health Trust will also conduct a caregiver training and placement program for volunteer and paid workers (including up to 10 Title V workers) to provide caregiver consultation. Finally, The Health Trust is funding grants that support caregivers and/or provide caregiver services to the underserved. As a result of these efforts, The Health Trust seeks to increase caregivers’ capacity to support older adults  and increase older adults’ ability to remain in their homes and communities.

 

5. Support and promote community engagement opportunities or older adults.

Older adults who are disengaged and isolated from their communities are at risk for lower quality of life, cognitive decline, depression and other health problems. To help support the engagement of older adults, The Health Trust is studying options for (1) engaging older adults in community learning, service, and meaningful work, especially those who are at risk for isolation (2) expanding capacity of the volunteer sector, nonprofits, government agencies and employers to provide meaningful opportunities for older adults. As a result of these efforts, The Health Trust aims to:

• Increase the number of organizations that engage older adults in meaningful community, volunteer, and/or work opportunities;
• Increase the number of older adults who are engaged in their communities;
• increase older adults' social connections;
• Decrease older adults' isolation and depression.  

 

6. Provide nutrition programs to support the needs of older adults.

A growing number of seniors live a solitary existence, suffering from the effects of poor nutrition because they are physically or financially unable to care for themselves. To help reserve this trend, The Health Trust operates its Meals on Wheels Program, which deliver nutritious meals daily to the homes of physically challenged, homebound individuals, provides daily wellness checks when trained food drivers visit the client’s home and  provides limited case management that connects clients with needed services and helps during a crisis. The Health Trust also continues to explore new opportunities to address nutrition for seniors comprehensively. As a result of this work, The Health Trust aims to:

• Increase older adults’ capacity to remain in their homes and communities
• Increase older adults' access to nutritious foods;
• Increase social connections while reducing isolation and depression.