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When Iʼm 84: What Should Life Look Like in Old Age?
Author(s) -
Lipsitz Lewis A.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of the american geriatrics society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.992
H-Index - 232
eISSN - 1532-5415
pISSN - 0002-8614
DOI - 10.1111/jgs.16408
Subject(s) - loneliness , gerontology , medicine , aging in place , healthy aging , retirement community , social isolation , quality of life (healthcare) , isolation (microbiology) , longevity , work (physics) , nursing , mechanical engineering , psychiatry , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , engineering
Housing and the built environment are well‐established social determinants of healthy longevity, yet no guidelines or standards exist for the design and construction of health‐promoting environments, especially for older adults who are at risk for functional decline and frailty. To envision what should be included in the design of healthy communities, it may help to reverse‐engineer what each of us would like our lives to look like in old age. In this special article, a geriatrician draws on his own personal aspirations and successful models of supportive community‐based programs to suggest key factors that should be considered in the design of future living environments. These include healthy housing that can enable aging in place without social isolation and loneliness; engagement in meaningful and productive work; financial, physical, transportation, food, and housing security; and affordable high‐quality home‐ and community‐based healthcare. By conceptualizing what we would like our later years to look like, future leaders can be more deliberate in creating living environments that promote a long and productive health span. J Am Geriatr Soc 68:967–969, 2020