The Workshop
Aging happens everywhere and with ever-greater frequency. The number of Americans aged 65 and older is projected to increase from 58 million in 2022 to 82 million by 2050 – a stunning 47% increase.

Nowhere is this demographic shift being felt more seismically than in the healthcare and living environments serving our aging population. People aged 65 and older are hospitalized twice as frequently as adults aged 45 to 64. The demand for all types of senior living – independent, assisted, skilled nursing and memory care – continues to outweigh supply.

Yes, it’s a challenge, but it’s also a tremendous opportunity – to re-envision, design and build a new generation of “age-friendly” care and living environments that support the goals of patients, residents, caregivers and organizations, and ultimately produce the best outcomes.

The Design for Healthy Aging workshop will provide you with not just a glimpse into that future, but the research, resources, tools and best practices to help get you there.

Whatever types of environments you are creating – from acute care and ambulatory/outpatient, to independent, assisted living, long term and memory care settings – the innovations, ideas and lessons learned presented by our expert faculty of forward-thinking administrators, policy makers, clinicians and designers will have broad and immediate application and impact.

Age-Friendly Health System Initiatives: The 4Ms (and sometimes 5)What is the near and far future of an Age-Friendly Health System (AFHS)? The national AFHS initiative launched by CMS and IHI, uses a well-established clinical framework, the 4Ms – What Matters, Medications, Mentation, Mobility (and increasingly a 5th M: Multi-complexity) – to advance care for older adults. How do the 4Ms create a framework to think about the built environment? Hear from this panel on the policy, regulatory, and practice initiatives that are underway, and learn about the possibilities that exist to address design for aging in all settings.

Panelists
Alice Bonner, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Johns Hopkins School of Nursing CAPABLE Program, Senior Advisor for Aging at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI)
Diana Anderson, MD, M.Arch, FACHA, Dochitect
Michael McKay, AIA, ACHE, EDAC, LEED AP, NCARB, Planning Design Construction and Corporate Real Estate, UW Health

Read more about the event HERE.

Day 1: Thursday, August 13 | 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM (PST) (2.0 LUs)
Designing for Health: COVID-19 + the Future of Senior Living Architecture

Keynote
Rodney Harrell, Ph.D., Vice-President, Family, Home + Community, AARP

Moderator
Kris Rebillot, Director of Communications, Buck Institute

Speakers
Diana Anderson, MD, M.Arch, Dochitect/Principal, Jacobs
Deborah Burnett, ASID, IES, AASM, Principal, Benya Burnett Consultancy
Leslie Moldow, FAIA, Principal, Perkins Eastman
John Newman, MD, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Buck Institute and Division of Geriatrics, UCSF
Leah Witt, M.D., Assistant Professor, UCSF Geriatrics Department of Medicine

Overview:

Healthcare design’s recent revolution towards improved patient well-being and care delivery has remained similar for several decades. Can we disrupt our current design thinking by combining medicine and architecture in order to reinvent some best practice design trends for an aging community?

By combining the knowledge of geriatric medicine and physical environmental design, the focus on prevention, rehabilitation, and independent living can allow for the building itself to become the fourth healer in addition to the patient, their family members and the clinical care team.

Webinar Feedback from Geriatricians, Clinical Staff and Administrators:

“Some of the topics presented have been things I’ve wondered about or thought myself. So this webinar has given me more confidence to suggest changes and to share this same info to others.”

“I will consider this information when doing any type of renovation or furniture purchase for our hospital. With limited funding, we can be creative in how we improve our space to meet the needs of our patients.”

“I will look for opportunities to take patients to windows and more nature friendly spaces when in my care and as much as possible.”

“I may consider approaching the patient differently. I will pass on the information to my CEO. We are currently in the process of building a new hospital and I think the information was amazing.”

“I will consider different options in areas where there is no window or natural light.”

“I will try to remember the inherent dangers that hospitals pose for patients (e.g., infections, falls, de-conditioning, pressure sores, etc) and try to always emphasize prevention over treatment.”