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[1] Thoughts

What this series is about ... As we age, keeping physically active is essential. It not only improves the appearance of the body, it also prevents the occurrence of health complications in the future. Join the discussion in this series as we research the various programs that can help maintain a healthy mind and body.

 






Staying Young: Successful Ageing Part 5

Linking successful ageing and community engagement
A recent six year longitudinal study of the relation between everyday activities and successful ageing highlight the importance of activity in successful ageing. The results suggest that different types of activities have different benefits. Whereas social and productive activities may afford physical benefits, as reflected in better function and greater longevity, more solitary activities, such as reading, may have more psychological benefits by providing a sense of engagement with life.

Verena H. Menec of the Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Manitoba, designed this study to examine longitudinally the relation between everyday activities and indicators of successful ageing, namely well-being, function, and mortality. The study was based on the Ageing in Manitoba Study, with activity being measured in 1990 and function, well-being, and mortality assessed in 1996.

Well-being was measured in terms of life satisfaction and happiness; function was defined in terms of a composite measure combining physical and cognitive function. Regression analyses indicated that greater overall activity level was related to greater happiness, better function, and reduced mortality. Different activities were related to different outcome measures; but generally, social and productive activities were positively related to happiness, function, and mortality, whereas more solitary activities (e.g. handwork hobbies) were related only to happiness.

Reinventing ageing: Baby boomers as a potential community resource
The 21 st century has brought a reversal in what had been a long-term trend toward earlier retirement. A continuing workforce participation of older Australians reflects that this trend reversal may be due, in part, to the strong economy of the 1990s. It also reflects the underlying structural changes that were put in place in the 1980s including theend of mandatory retirement, the decline in defined benefit retirement plans, changes to social security that eliminate disincentives to remain in the labor force, changes in the occupational mix, technological advancements, and improvements in the health and longevity of older Australians.

As many working boomers reach 65 during the course of the first decade of the 21st century, the connection between age and retirement is eroding. Instead of retiring en masse in their late 50s or early 60s (as their parents), many boomers now prefer to continue working longer, and to move gradually towards complete retirement. These boomers are responding in large numbers for community engagement; but are civic organisations of various kinds prepared to receive them? What roles can higher education industry, the media, and social marketing campaigns play in helping society redefine the meaning and purpose of the older years?

Conventional wisdom holds that individuals volunteer in greater numbers and with greater frequency after they retire, when they have time on their hands. This is only partially correct. As a general rule, the percentage of people who volunteer reaches a peak in mid-life-not in retirement-and then gradually declines. Volunteering in this peak period is associated with having more, rather than fewer, obligations and commitments. On the other hand, individuals who have volunteered throughout their lifetime continue to do so with greater frequency in later years as volunteers.

 Volunteering is not an isolated activity. Instead, it is a reflection of an underlying quality of social connectedness that manifests itself in different ways: through work or social life, formal community service or informal helping, secular civic engagement or faith-based good works. Social connectedness is also strongly associated with the health and wellbeing of individuals in a community, and this in itself is a necessary precondition for successful ageing and community engagement, (Berkman et al. 2000; Fried et al. 2004).

Political scientist Robert Putnam and others have described this tapestry of social connections as the "social capital" of the community. At the community level, social capital refers to what Putnam has called the "generalised reciprocities" that foster connectedness across the community (Putnam 2003). It is this degree of generalised reciprocity and connectedness that deeply influences the community's quality of life by whatever indicators one might choose, from crime rates to student performance in school to the health and longevity of citizens. The benefits of social capital, both to individuals and to communities, derive not so much from the direct services that result from it, but from the very sense of connectedness that it fosters. In this sense, what people do matters less than the fact that they are engaged and that they belong (Putnam 2003).

However, literature indicates that although close to one-third of boomers say they expect to participate in community service after retirement, there is a difference between intentions and actions, and some boomers may need a push. Consequently, large-scale efforts may be needed to recruit boomers as volunteers. For example, an institutional campaign-on a scale not previously attempted-might very well succeed in mobilising boomers to act on their stated intentions. Such a campaign could have a big impact on stimulating public dialogue about the meaning and purpose of later years.

In recent report on the history and demise of the innovative Gannett Center for Media Studies at Columbia University, Dennis and Stebenne reflect on the historically weak relationship between media industries and academic institutions. These issues are significant because any effort to prompt new thinking about images of ageing requires credible insights that will command attention among practitioners.

A critical question in relation to the ageing boomers' potential as a community resource, then, is the extent to which institutional structures can be advanced to help this quality of social connectedness. Community engagement policies need to be maneuvered and practiced within various disciplines and industries; and electronic and print media encouraged to rethink the images of ageing in new ways. This is where the real promise of improving the quality of community engagement lies, played out through a variety of mechanisms both, formal and informal, structured and unstructured, organised and un-organised.

References

Berkman et al. 2000. From social integration to health: Durkheim in the new millennium, Social Science & Medicine 51 ( 2000) 843-857 845, pp. 4.

Everette E Dennis & David L Stebenne 2003. Requiem for a Think Tank: The Life and Death of the Gannett Center at Columbia , 1984-1996. The Harvard International Journal of Press/Politics, Vol. 8, No. 2, 11-35 (2003).

Fried M et al. A social model for health promotion for an aging population: Initial evidence on the experience corps model. Journal of Urban Health, Vol 81, No 1, March 2004, Springer Boston.

Moen, Phyllis. (Ed.) 2003. It¡¯s About Time: Couples and Careers. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press.

Putnam RD & Feldstein LM 2003. Better Together: Restoring the American Community  

Verena H Menec, Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3E 0W3, Canada.

Reinventing Ageing: Baby Boomers and Civic Engagement . Harvard School of Public Health 2004, http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/chc/reinventingageing/Report.pdf ¡°Conference on Baby Boomers and Retirement: Impact.

[2] Community Update

1. Fall-related hospitalizations among older people: socio-cultural and regional aspects
The ageing of the Australian population has enlarged the population at high risk of fall-related injury and population projections imply substantial increase in years to come. A large proportion of Australia's older population were born overseas and changing migration patterns following the Second World War have resulted in an older population which is becoming highly culturally and linguistically diverse.

The report of a study of falls in the older Australian population , commissioned to Clare Bradley and James E. Harrison of Flinders University, was launched by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare on 14 May 2007. This report examines fall-related hospitalisations for people aged 65 and older for the years 2000-03 according to country of birth and place of usual residence.

The study period conform to the ¡°healthy migrant¡± hypothesis. The findings indicate that rates of falls are highest in the Australian-born and lowest in older people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

While current rates of falls in migrant groups are lower than that of the Australian-born population the rates of hospitalisations are still substantial and contribute to an important proportion of the nation's health care costs. The changing age- and cultural- structure of the migrant population will increase health care costs considerably in the near future, therefore, preventative approaches need to be inclusive of diverse migrant groups. Regional analyses also suggest that local socio-cultural population profiles should be taken into account in future falls prevention planning.

Reference:
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), 14 May 2007; ISBN 978 1 74024 681 1, http://www.nisu.flinders.edu.au/pubs/reports/2007 injcat97.php

 
2. OECD Forum: Innovation, Growth and Equity, Paris, 14-15 May 2007
The OECD Forum, as a hub of permanent dialogue on globalisation issues, is bringing together business and labour representatives, civil society personalities, government ministers and leaders of international organisations to discuss key aspects of the OECD agenda that will be covered by the OECD Council of Ministers at their subsequent annual meeting.

The Forum theme of "Innovation, Growth and Equity" is of crucial importance to today's world. While innovation has driven much of the rise in living standards since the Industrial Revolution, its impact on growth is reinforced by globalisation. Increased competition and access to new ideas and technologies are at the root of this new innovation process. And at the same time, the emergence of new economies like China and India adds pressures for OECD countries to move up the value chain and engage in a continuous process of adjustment and innovation. Innovation is also important to addressing global challenges such as climate change and sustainable development.

Many of our citizens are worried about the impact of globalization on living standards and job security. However, according to the OECD's reading of the evidence, the actual impact depends on the quality of national policies. For example, reducing the barriers to business start-ups improves the economy's capacity to seize the new opportunities arising from a more integrated world economy. Good national policies have an important role to play in terms of enhancing workers' mobility, upgrading their skills and providing adequate income support, in a context of increasing pressures to deal with technological change and adapt to this new context.

One of the great challenges for the policy agenda for reaping the full benefits of globalisation is the so-called political economy of reform. How can governments implement the necessary reforms and keep the public's support? Too often we have to wait for a crisis before reforms get launched. The key element, thus, is wider community engagement involving all stakeholder groups and the broader public in discussions on the benefits of reforms -- or the costs of the absence of reform.

Among other issues, the hot topics at the Forum include:

But, what is innovation ¡­?
Colloquially, it is often used as a synonym for ¡°invention¡±. Wikipedia defines it more accurately as ¡°the implementation of a new or significantly improved idea, good, service, process or practice¡±. Economists define ¡°innovation¡± as the entire process from research through implementation not just for products but also processes (e.g. services, engineering and distribution methods) and even policies. Therefore, a true summary of discussions on this subject should cover the entire Forum, and apply to all aspects of the discussion at the OECD Forum.

As far as health is concerned, innovation needs to encompass a continuum from research to practice, from biotech products to health system policies. Ensuring the availability of essential health interventions requires attention to public research and development and related institutions, as well as a supportive policy environment for knowledge transfer and exchange. A systems approach that focuses on dynamic linkages among all components requires appropriate linkages between policies and practices. Further research in this area is critical.

Monika Bhatia
Editor, Health and Ageing

15 May 2007