Articles
The Journal on Active Aging brings articles of value to professionals dedicated to older-adult quality of life. Content sweeps across the active-aging landscape to focus on education and practice. Find articles of interest by searching the article archives in three ways: Enter a keyword in the articles search bar; click on search by topic; or type a keyword or phrase in the general search bar at the top of the page.
Getting buy-in for wellness by John Rude, MS
I often find myself seated in a boardroom, wondering what these dedicated trustees are thinking as I load them up with information about the intrinsic values of wellness. Are they personally committed to better health? Do they manage or work in an organizational setting that supports health and well-being? Like most North Americans, are they dependent on the disease model? How flexible are their thinking patterns as they contemplate a wellness initiative for the organization they serve? Are they willing to make a wellness investment, knowing it’s much more difficult to finance prevention programs as opposed to disease programs? These and many other questions arise, spoken or unspoken, as organizational leaders attempt to make intelligent decisions about embracing a new business venture of any kind—including wellness.
moreConstruction
Sunnyside's Escape to Paris 'educates, motivates and encourages' residents to participate in wellness
Each January the Wellness Center holds a weeklong themed open house and accompanying motivational challenge. In 2009, Sunnyside residents were invited to Escape to Paris on a “virtual vacation” of activities and challenge themselves to “climb” the Eiffel Tower. To learn more about Sunnyside’s efforts, the Journal on Active Aging® recently asked Schaffer about this French-themed program.
moreInnovator awards
Defining your wellness center concept by Gary Henkin, BS
The conceptual planning of your clubhouse, spa, wellness center or community amenities is among the most critical phases of the project development process. Many decisions made in this stage ultimately influence the project’s success as a whole, yet conceptual planning is commonly underemphasized and misunderstood.
In designing a fitness center or recreation complex for a setting such as a retirement community, many developers simply allocate a designated amount of space to the master plan; however, they often fail to tie the intended scope and function of this facility to the community’s overall concept. This is a significant missed opportunity. A well-planned wellness center or leisure complex can entice the consumer, while producing lasting memories that deliver a community’s lifestyle promise.
Construction
Active Aging Week 2010
It all began in 2003 with an idea: If people had a chance to try out or learn about wellness activities, maybe they would discover an approach that suited their lifestyles and interests. Active Aging Week was launched.
Today, in 2010, Active Aging Week is a special occasion that many hosts and older adults look forward to. Hosts say they gain new participants and reinspire their regulars. Participants discover that many activities contribute to their enjoyment and participation in life. And, since they often help plan and run the week’s events, they become ambassadors to their friends and neighbors.
ICAA initiatives
Hiring a marketing agency: seven critical considerations by Kathy Osen East, MPA, MIRM
If you want to hire a new marketing, public relations or advertising agency, or wonder if the firm you currently use is the best possible marketing partner, you could benefit from asking yourself a few key questions. The knowledge you will gain by contemplating these questions will clarify your expectations.
moreManagement
RE-AIM: a comprehensive framework for program planning and evaluation
Effective, practical, evidence-based interventions for health promotion and self-management of chronic disease offer advantages for both older adults and program planners. As program participants, older adults can look forward to improvements in their health. Program planners can proceed confidently with the knowledge that these programs will yield demonstrable, measurable outcomes that both healthcare partners and funders seek and increasingly support.
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