The Wichita State University Regional Institute on Aging convened "Aging on the Plains" September 24-26, 2008 at the Broadview Hotel in Wichita, KS.
The conference was designed to help participants:
- Gain a broad understanding of the history of aging in America, with an emphasis on the relative success achieved by older persons
- Understand the demographic and social components of aging on the plains
- Appreciate the predictions of changes in the characteristics of the older adult population to 2050 in the U.S. (including gender, ethnicity, and family structure)
- Be aware of the social and psychological meanings of those changes for older residents who "age-in-place" in rural towns
- Grasp the context of community decline in selected small Kansas towns
- Understand lifestyle factors associated with healthy aging
- Identify evidence-based programs that are successful in preventing and/or managing chronic illnesses in later life
- Understand innovative programs being developed in Kansas to meet the needs of older adults
- Understand, in general, the dramatic advances in technology and their application to the health and well-being of older adults
- Understand the necessity for innovation and new paradigms to address the needs of the large and growing percentage of older adults in rural communities
The conference included an "Innovation on the Plains" panel. Kansas, like much of the central U.S. has a few population centers with the remainder of its population spread over relatively large geographic areas. As people age in Kansas, they often stay in their local community, even if services are scarce or nonexistent. In the current economic and workforce climate, it is not feasible to build "brick and mortar" solutions for care in every small community. Rather, solutions are emerging from local grassroots efforts in combination with technological and communication advances that are aimed at improving the lives and enhancing the well-being of those elders who choose to age in place. The panel will showcase a variety of innovative programs aimed at addressing services and needs of older adults. The conference was sponsored in part by the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund, Central Plains Geriatric Education Center, Via Christi Senior Services, Kansas Department on Aging, Kansas Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, Envision, Presbyterian Manors of Mid-America and Larksfield Place Retirement Community.