By 2040, nearly one in seven people is predicted to be over the age of 75, according to the Government’s “Future of an Ageing Population” Report. Without significant improvements in health, the amount of ill-house and disability will increase, say the authors. As health and wellbeing experts we know that mobility is closely related to health and we have many skills with which to help achieve this and there is a clear role for health and wellbeing professionals in creating active ageing.
Oliver Letwin, in the introduction to the Government’s “Future of an Ageing Population” Report wrote “Will the growing number of people in later life be predominantly empowered, skilled, healthy and able to contribute fully to society? Or will we be increasingly unhealthy, disempowered and dependent? Answering this challenge cannot be Government’s job alone. Employers will need to adapt to an ageing workforce. Families and communities have a role to play in supporting their loved ones to age well. Individuals can, and must be supported to, make choices which will better prepare them for a happy, productive and fulfilling later life.” Click here for the link to the report.
The report also recognises the role of lifelong learning: there is clearly a role here for trainers running courses on health, meditation and mindfulness to access this market. The authors of the report also believe that health and care costs can be reduced and resources better used by interventions which prevent and manage chronic conditions, and provide individuals with the tools to take more responsibility for their health.
The International Council for Active Ageing has a number of really useful whitepapers that you might like to take advantage of in order to put together proposals for funding and corporate opportunities. While some resources are for members, the whitepapers are free to non-members and include: Strategies for bringing wellness to people with cognitive decline; Discovering the connections between brain health and wellness; Strategies that create an environment for wellness; The business case for wellness programs in retirement communities and seniors housing and Developing the business case for wellness.
The Council also has ideas, free resources and toolkits for Active Ageing Week, October 1 to 7 2019, just go click here:
Action:
Look into which local organisations are working with social prescribing and build links.
Consider collecting MYCAW data for clients as a data source for proposals., click here .
Research the financial requirements for working in partnership with local funding organisations and consider how you can put them into place if this is an area you would like to build your offer.