Age-Friendly Public Health Systems
Trust for America’s Health (TFAH) is partnering with state and local health departments to implement a public health framework to improve the health and well-being of older adults.
Access to the COVID-19 Vaccine for Homebound Older Adults
TFAH is working to better understand the challenges, explore potential solutions, and identify innovative vaccine distribution mechanisms for older adults and people with disabilities who are homebound. Please read our policy brief and one-pager on this issue .
Guide to Innovative Practices
COVID-19 vaccination efforts for those who are homebound continue to be implemented, and there is an ongoing evolution of practices to support them. This guide is designed to assist entities organizing homebound COVID-19 vaccination programs and details innovative practices in use across the country, including the essential role of non-traditional partnerships.
Huddle Calls
In partnership with The John A. Hartford Foundation and the Cambia Health Foundation, TFAH is hosted a series of “Huddle” calls. These 30 minute calls provide just-in-time information on innovative practices, as well as a platform for discussion and brainstorming among participants.
Recordings of previous Huddle calls can be accessed here:
- March 5, 2021, featuring the American Academy of Home Care Medicine
- March 10, 2021, featuring the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging
- March 12, 2021, featuring the Centers for Disease Control’s Vaccine Task Force
- March 17, 2021, featuring the Visiting Nurses Association (VNA) Health Group
- March 19, 2021, featuring the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
- March 24, 2021, discussion of the policy brief recommendations
- March 26, 2021, featuring the Executive Office of Elder Affairs, Commonwealth of Massachusetts
- April 2, 2021, featuring the Florida Department of Health – Seminole County
- April 7, 2021, featuring Bloom Healthcare
- April 9, 2021, discussion of the policy brief recommendation
- April 14, 2021, featuring the Administration for Community Living
- April 16, 2021, featuring the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- April 21, 2021, featuring the Association of University Centers on Disabilities
- April 23, 2021, featuring LeadingAge
- April 28, 2021, discussion of the Guide to Innovative Practices
- April 30, 2021, featuring National Domestic Workers Alliance
To demonstrate the value of creating AFPHS, TFAH is working directly with several states as they explore public health roles in healthy aging.
Florida
TFAH has completed a successful pilot of the AFPHS framework in partnership with the Florida Department of Health. During this pilot, TFAH worked directly with 37 of Florida’s 67 county health departments as they explored and expanded their roles in older adult health. This effort has included creating and supporting collaborations between the public health and aging sectors, collecting and disseminating data on the state’s older adult population, and ensuring all planning and programming is done with an aging lens. Phase I of this work has been possible with generous funding from The John A. Hartford Foundation. The successes in Florida have been documented in the Florida Progress Report. Phase II of the Florida initiative will focus more deeply on public health’s engagement with local partners, improving emergency preparedness, and mitigating the consequences of social isolation and loneliness on older adults.
Michigan
In partnership with the Michigan Public Health Institute, and with funding from the Michigan Health Endowment Fund, TFAH will help to facilitate and coordinate Michigan’s AFPHS initiative. Local health departments will work in collaboration with aging sector partners.
Mississippi and Washington
These two states have just been selected as AFPHS Expansion States. With funding from The John A. Hartford Foundation, TFAH will work intensively with the health departments in Mississippi and Washington to further explore public health’s roles in aging, including a deeper focus on addressing health disparities among older adults. This project will continue to provide necessary steps for success that will be shared with public health systems in other states.
TFAH is also partnering with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to help facilitate collaboration among state public health and aging services leaders. This collaboration is crucial to sustain the healthy aging efforts initiated at the 2018 Healthy Aging Summit.
TFAH works with numerous stakeholders and partners to improve older adult health and well-being at the national, state, and local levels. For more information and to engage with TFAH, please contact Megan Wolfe at [email protected].
Recognition Program
TFAH is excited to introduce the AFPHS Recognition Program and invites state and local health departments to learn more here: https://www.tfah.org/initiatives/age-friendly-recognition-program/
Building Capacity
To help prepare state and local health departments to meet the challenges and leverage opportunities in healthy aging, TFAH will provide learning sessions on the third Thursday of each month in 2021. These AFPHS trainings will focus on key issues in healthy aging and the public health roles. Currently scheduled trainings are listed below with links to register for each one.
May 20, 2021 – Ensuring Equitable Access to the COVID Vaccine for the Homebound
Recordings of previous trainings are below:
- January 21, 2021- Understanding and Overcoming Ageism
- February 17, 2021 –Reducing Older Adult Health Disparities
- March 18, 2021 – Public Health’s Role in Addressing Social Isolation
- April 15, 2021 – Public Health, Housing, and Older Adults