Healthy Aging
Overview
The Colorado Trust’s Healthy Aging initiative helped senior-serving organizations meet the needs of the state’s growing aging population. Through this effort, 20 grantees worked to strengthen their organizational capacity to improve information and referral services for seniors, increase access to senior support services, address senior residential needs, bolster caregiver support services, and promote healthy lifestyles and overall wellness among seniors. Specific areas of focus included:
- Development of senior-specific wellness programs that include exercise, nutrition, disease management, screening and home modification
- Meal delivery services and other in-home care
- Safety-net health services in subsidized senior housing, from monthly health promotion clinics and nursing case management, to support of the visually impaired
- Transportation options to improve seniors’ access to health and wellness services
- Expansion of holistic caregiver support services
- Training for caretakers of seniors with mental health needs.
An organizational capacity assessment was made available to grantees at the beginning of this five-year initiative.
Coordinating Agency
Tri-County Health Department, the largest local health department in Colorado, served as the statewide coordinating agency for this initiative. The department provided day-to-day management and technical assistance to grantees.
Grantees
- Aurora Center for Active Adults
- Bent County HealthCare Center
- Catholic Charities and Community Services of Denver
- Colorado Center for the Blind
- Gunnison County Public Health Department
- HealthSET
- Jefferson Center for Mental Health
- La Plata County Department of Human Services
- Larimer County Human Services Department – Office on Aging
- Lutheran Family Services of Colorado
- Northwest Colorado Visiting Nurse Association
- Pikes Peak Library District Foundation
- Rebuilding Together Metro Denver
- Senior Resource Development Agency
- South Central Council of Governments
- SouthWest Improvement Council, Inc.
- Spellbinders
- The Center for African American Health
- Tri-County Health Department
- Visiting Nurse Corporation of Colorado
- Volunteers of America, Inc.
Evaluation Findings
Evaluation
An independent evaluation was conducted by the National Research Center, Inc. to determine whether providing technical assistance to build the capacity of grantee organizations helped to improve their ability to serve seniors. Grantees reported program-level outcomes, and the evaluation examined associations between these outcomes and increased organizational capacity.
