Excellence in Elder Care

Donors and Partners:
Arthur D. Little
Gary Weber
Haseltine Foundation for Science and the Arts
Swecare

Background:
The world population is aging more quickly than ever before. With this change in demographics come challenges to healthcare systems that governments had never previously envisioned. Greatest among them is how governments can absorb the increasing demands of an aging population on their healthcare systems at the same time that their percentage of young, able workers decrease. For countries to maximize the potential of their aging populations and provide quality care to the entire population, no matter their age, policymakers must rethink how they respond to aging.

Program Objectives:
For a period of three years, ACCESS Health interviewed more than sixty pioneers in elder care and dementia care across Norther Europe, Asia, and the United States. These interviews helped us identify best practices in elder and long term care. Our method is to identify, analyze, and document best practices in managing these patients and to consult with public and private providers to help implement new and better cost effective ways to care for them. Our goal is to inspire and guide healthcare professionals and legislative leaders in all countries to improve care for their own people.

Impact:
Our analysis of these practices helps public and private healthcare providers implement new and more cost effective ways to deliver care. It can also help individuals living with dementia and their caregivers understand innovative options for care that they may not know exist.

In addition to publishing and disseminating the transcripts of all our interviews with elder care experts – which can be found in the Publications section of our website – our research has also contributed to three major books:

Aging Well: Solutions to the Most Pressing Global Challenges of Aging which provides glimpses into the real-life challenges facing older adults, such as loneliness, community connection, aging in place, and the need for emergency care in the hospital and the home. Aging Well also offers caregivers, policymakers, and healthcare leaders insights into sustainable models of excellence that can reduce health spending while improving the health, wellbeing, and quality of life for older adults.

Voices in Dementia Care: Changing the Culture of Care which provides an intimate look at the challenges of delivering high quality dementia care with limited resources and gives readers a list of best practices that can be adapted and applied in the home and in institutional settings.

Aging with Dignity: Innovation and Challenge in Sweden – the Voice of Care Professionals which is a study of the future of long-term care through the lens of the Swedish healthcare system. The Swedish long-term and social care systems have remarkable strengths, including well-trained nurses, innovative dementia services, and passionate leaders who make a difference in their own organizations and beyond.

More information on each of these books can be found at accessaging.com