Tag Archives: Europe

Creating age-friendly environments in Europe

Posted on by under Education

Creating age-friendly environments in Europe. A tool for local policy-makers and planners (2016)

Policies to create more age-friendly environments, in which a growing number of cities and communities, local authorities and regional governments participate, have become a forceful movement in Europe and globally. These policies explore synergies between improving the physical environment of neighbourhoods, transport and housing; increasing respect, social inclusion and community participation; and investing in public services. This publication provides a toolbox to guide local policy-makers and planners in developing, implementing and evaluating age-friendly policies and interventions – policies that support people to age actively and healthily and thus both to do the things that are important to them and to contribute to their communities. Based on lessons learned from existing age-friendly initiatives in Europe, this publication summarizes key factors for establishing and sustaining successful initiatives within four phases of the policy process: engaging, planning, implementing and evaluating. A wealth of examples illustrates how local governments have put the principles of age-friendly action into practice.

Source: Creating age-friendly environments in Europe. A tool for local policy-makers and planners (2016)

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Remote Support for Aged People Project

Posted on by under Care, Gerontechnology, Research

The RemoAge project will tackle the challenge of supporting people with dementia and other frail older people to age at home in remote and sparsely populated areas of the northern periphery of Europe. Long distances and limited resources are two challenges to overcome.

Tested and evaluated service packages will meet this challenge. The service packages will include methods to support the elderly with health and social care needs, flexibility to individual needs and an increased level of remote support.

Expected results are improved access to personalized services in direct support in daily life, support to family carers and health personnel, but also increased involvement of the community.

Target groups:

– Frail older people, including people with dementia, in remote communities

– Family carers and family members of the frail older people

– Community members

– Health and social care professionals

The target groups will be involved throughout the project in a participatory process from the identification of needs, the adaptation of services and the evaluation of services. A main focus of the project is to develop and implement person centred services that are by definition services adapted to the individual needs of the frail older person and their family.

Source: Project

Dementia: investing against the trillion dollar disease

Posted on by under Education, Health, Inspiration, Research, Reviews

research*eu results features highlights from the most exciting EU-funded research and development projects. It is published 10 times per year in English. The August/September 2016 issue is a special feature on ‘Dementia: investing against the trillion dollar disease’.

research*eu results magazine - August 2016/September 2016

Issue 55 – August 2016/September 2016

Interviews:

  • Julie Wadoux of AGE Platform Europe in Belgium on ‘Stakeholders join forces to create age-friendly environments across Europe’
  • Hubert Martens of Medtronic in the Netherlands on ‘Brain pacemakers without side effects’
  • Dr. Mark Isalan of Imperial College London in the United Kingdom on ‘The long sought cure to Huntington’s disease’

Other highlights:

  • Chest pain treatment offers hope for the fight against neglected fungal diseases
  • What knowledge societies can learn from foraging societies
  • Disrupting the solar energy status quo
  • A deeper understanding about the causes of sea-level rise
  • New interactive app encourages users to adopt healthier lifestyles
  • EU Scientists use silver to make lights shine more brightly
  • New tools and methods to protect Europe’s Critical Infrastructure
  • Innovative stacking technique results in highly detailed images of Mars

 

You can download it for free here:  http://bookshop.europa.eu/en/research-eu-results-magazine-pbZZAC16007/;pgid=GSPefJMEtXBSR0dT6jbGakZD0000VCTF9fYd;sid=a9NobXoofeZodS3fMVj2yhgNyRAUPX37bQA=?CatalogCategoryID=Yriep2Ix6ucAAAEvxusQ_v3E

And check out other issues from research*eu results here:  http://cordis.europa.eu/research-eu/magazine_en.html

Independent living in an ageing society through innovative ICT solutions

Posted on by under Gerontechnology, Health, Inspiration, Research

Independent living in an ageing society through innovative ICT solutions

Europe is facing a major societal challenge in the fact of a rapidly increasing ageing population. A key challenge is to find real solutions to ensure that our older citizens are able to live healthy, fulfilling and independent lives whilst keeping health and care systems sustainable. Exciting and groundbreaking EU research and innovation efforts look set to deliver these solutions.
Independent living in an ageing society through innovative ICT solutions

© European Union, 2016

With each passing year, Europeans are living longer. Although this is to be applauded, there will be increasing demands for health, social and informal care services over the coming decades. This will have real effects on how we live, work and shape our external and domestic environments – home, communities, cities and towns. Questions over who is (or who should be) responsible for health and social care will be at the top of political agendas and concrete answers must be provided. At the same time, the changing age structure of our society can also open up new opportunities for innovation in the digital economy and society.
Read more at:  http://cordis.europa.eu/article/id/400060-independent-living-in-an-ageing-society-through-ict_en.html

Mapping dementia-friendly communities across Europe

Posted on by under Inspiration

Europe is facing unprecedented demographic changes with an increasing ageing population. There are an estimated 8.7 million people living with dementia in Europe and this number is expected to rise. Although dementia is not a natural consequence of ageing, the impact of the condition on the elderly is set to grow. In the absence of a cure or universally effective treatments for dementia, in the foreseeable future, there is both the opportunity and necessity for creative, positive community-based initiatives to support people living with dementia, not only to live well but also be active participants in their communities. It is crucial that ‘dementia-friendly community’ initiatives situate people with dementia at the centre, maintaining a view of them as people, citizens, and equal members of society, not just service users or patients.

Click on the title below to read the report:

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Danish model of eHealth

Posted on by under Care, Education, Health, Inspiration

As a follow-up to my previous post on eHealth in Denmark, this shorter, downloadable document (also in English) gives and oversight and real-life examples of the Danish model of eHealth and how eHealth is used in Denmark.

Click on the link below to access it – happy and healthy reading!

The Danish model – Denmark and eHealth

From innovation to implementation – eHealth in the WHO European Region (2016)

Posted on by under Education, Gerontechnology, Health, Inspiration, Research, Reviews

It’s finally here!

from-innovation-ehealth

Please have a read of the World Health Organization European eHealth report and share it with those who would be interested. In particular, you may find the case example on page 71 interesting, where big data for dementia research and treatment is discussed. Or the case example on page 36 about eHealth supporting aged care and carers.

If you like it, please share it 🙂

Happy reading!

Source: From innovation to implementation – eHealth in the WHO European Region (2016)

VPH-DARE@IT: Virtual Physiological Human – Dementia Research Enabled by IT

Posted on by under Gerontechnology, Research

The expected impact of the project will influence the scientific, clinical and industrial communities across Europe and internationally to improve the healthcare of dementia patients. This will both improve patients’ quality of life, and also reduce the burden on carers and the costs of supporting people with dementia.

The “Virtual Physiological Human: DementiA Research Enabled by IT” (VPH-DARE@IT) project aims to provide a systematic, multifactorial and multiscale modelling approach to understanding dementia onset and progression and enable more objective, earlier, predictive and individualised diagnoses and prognoses of dementias to cope with the challenge of an ageing European society.

Source: VPH-DARE@IT: Virtual Physiological Human – Dementia Research Enabled by IT | Joinup

Internship on Age-Friendly Cities Initiative

Posted on by under Gerontechnology, Health, Reviews

Internship with the World Health Organization’s Global Network of Age-friendly Cities

In January, 2013, I started a 3-month internship with the World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe. I will be working on how to incorporate eHealth in the Age-friendly cities initiative. I will be posting some updates here on how the internship is going and how gerontechnology will be playing a role in Age-friendly cities.

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European tour for professionals in aged and disability care

Posted on by under Education

European tours for professionals in aged & disability care (Australia)

I came across this advertisement through the Telehealth and Telecare Aware newsletter I receive. I immediately contacted Elizabeth Dodd to see if it was possible I could join in the tour while they are here in Denmark, or if I could be of any help in finding places to visit or contacts while here. After some weeks of email correspondence to work out a price (I wouldn’t be joining the whole tour, and I won’t need any of the accommodation, meals, or transportation), we agreed that I could join the group while they are here in Denmark for 2 days and I will make a webinar for them at a later date in lieu of payment! I am SUPER excited about this!!
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Tourism for adults 55+

Posted on by under Vacation

ESCAPE – Facilitating tourism for 55+

ESCAPE-logo-hor-CMYB

Tourism is an economic activity likely to generate growth and employment in the EU, while contributing to the economic and social development and integration. Led by the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the ESCAPE project runs from September 2014 to February 2016 with the objective of promoting and facilitating senior tourism in Europe.

The project will elaborate transferrable business models and transnational tourism packages in order to increase tourism flows in Europe, as well as carry out pilot test to assess the effectiveness of these packages.

The ESCAPE project gathers partners from Italy (PromoFirenze), Cyprus (Cyprus Tourism Organisation and TOP KINISIS TRAVEL), France (Gers Chambre de Commerce et de l’Industrie), Bulgaria (Cluster for Accessible Tourism) and Portugal (+Passeio) with the aim to facilitate transnational exchanges off-seasons for seniors.

Together with its 7 partners, AGE Platform Europe will:

  • help identify the needs of tourists 55+, in order to meet their needs in practice;
  • draft policy recommendations for the improvement of the tourism packages;
  • involve older people in the setting up of local and regional advisory committees;
  • support the development of tourism packages for seniors, as well as
  • disseminate the project’s activities and results among older people.

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