NEW YORK CITY, Feb. 20–From March to May, The New York Academy Medicine will be hosting a series of lectures on the very topical and timely issue of the future of aging in New York City. The series was kicked off by the well attended Duncan Clark lecture featuring Carol Raphael, President and CEO, Visiting Nurse Service of New York, speaking on reinventing traditional health care to reflect a new paradigm in aging. The next lectures will tackle the infrastructure needed to allow older adults to age at home, transitions in care and the future health care workforce for older Americans.

New York City’s elderly population, which stood at 937,900 in 2000, is projected to increase to 1,352,000 by 2030. While this rapid growth presents many opportunities, it will also place unprecedented demands on City infrastructure. Planning is needed to ensure New York City remains a supportive environment for its older residents.

Some steps are already being taken. In January, Mayor Bloomberg announced in his State of the City address the “City for All Ages” project which is designed to make New York a better place in which to grow old. The project builds upon the Academy’s Age-Friendly NYC initiative, launched with the New York City Council last July. Guided by a protocol developed by the World Health Organization, the initiative is assessing the city’s age-friendliness in eight key areas of city life, ranging from housing to transportation to social participation. In the spring a blueprint for improvement will be presented and a public-private commission will be formed to oversee implementation.

The Section on Health Care Delivery lecture series, , Building a More Responsive Health Care System for the Aging Population in New York, will take forward this initiative with these upcoming three events:

Better Community Support for Older Persons
March 11, 5:30 – 7:30 pm

Panelists:
Fredda Vladeck, M.S., Project Director, Aging in Place Initiative, United Hospital Fund. Patricia Volland, MSW, MBA, Director Social Work Leadership Institute and Senior Vice President for Strategy and Business, The New York Academy of Medicine. Susan C. Reinhard, Director of the AARP Public Policy Institute.

Moderator:
Steve Schoenbaum. MD, MPH, Executive Vice President, The Commonwealth Fund and Chairman, Section on Health Care Delivery

Transitions in Care
April 22, 5:30 – 7:30 pm

Moderator:
Mary Jane Koren, MD, MPH, Assistant Vice-President, The Commonwealth Fund

The Future Health Care Workforce for Older Americans: Findings from the Institute of Medicine
May 19, 5:30 – 7:30 pm

Moderator:
Corrine H. Rieder, EdM, EdD, Executive Director and Treasurer, The John A. Hartford Foundation

The New York Academy of Medicine is an independent, non-partisan, non-profit institution whose mission is to enhance the health of the public. Its research, education, community engagement, and evidence-based advocacy seek to improve the health of people living in cities, especially disadvantaged and vulnerable populations. The impact of these initiatives reaches into neighborhoods in New York City, across the country, and around the world. It works with community based organizations, academic institutions, corporations, the media, and government to catalyze and contribute to changes that promote health.

Posted on 02/21/2008

Contact:
Malini Doddamani
Director of Communications
mdoddamani@nyam.org
212.822.7285