Community Supports for Rural Aging in Place and Independent Living – Models and Innovations

Evidence-Based Examples

Telepsychology-Service Delivery for Depressed Elderly Veterans

Updated/reviewed April 2024

• Need: To provide evidence-based psychotherapy for depression in elderly veterans who are unable to seek mental health treatment due to distance or stigma.
• Intervention: Telepsychology-Service Delivery for Depressed Elderly Veterans compared providing behavioral activation therapy via home-based telehealth and the same treatment delivered in a traditional office-based format.
• Results: A 2015 study and two 2016 studies show that providing treatment via home-based telehealth to elderly veterans in South Carolina resulted in the same improved health outcomes, quality of life, satisfaction with care, and cost of healthcare compared to those receiving face-to-face treatment.

StrongPeople™ Program

Updated/reviewed July 2023

• Need: Few older adults, particularly women and those in rural areas, participate in healthy living interventions.
• Intervention: Health educators lead community-based healthy living classes, which include strength training, aerobic exercise, dietary skill building, and/or civic engagement, depending on the program.
• Results: StrongPeople™ programs have been shown to improve weight, diet, physical activity, strength, cardiovascular health profile, physical function, pain, depression, and/or self-confidence in midlife and older adults.

Fit & Strong!®

Updated/reviewed August 2020

• Need: Osteoarthritis is a chronic condition which often causes multiple related disabilities in older adults.
• Intervention: An 8-week physical activity, behavior change, and falls prevention program geared to older adults with osteoarthritis.
• Results: Participants gained confidence with increased exercise, lessened stiffness, improved joint pain and improved lower extremity strength and mobility.

Effective Examples

Livingston County Help For Seniors

Updated/reviewed May 2020

• Need: Meeting the health needs of geriatric patients in rural Livingston County, New York.
• Intervention: The Help for Seniors program was developed and using its 'vodcasts,' local EMTs were trained in geriatric screening methods and health needs treatment.
• Results: In addition to developing a successful model for educating EMS personnel, the program screened over 1200 individuals and identified various risks among the geriatric population.

Promising Examples

SASH® (Support and Services at Home)

Updated/reviewed March 2024

• Need: In Vermont, the growing population of older adults, coupled with a lack of a decentralized, home-based system of care management, poses significant challenges for those who want to remain living independently at home.
• Intervention: SASH® (Support and Services at Home), based in affordable housing and their surrounding communities throughout the state, works with community partners to help older adults and people with disabilities receive the care they need so they can continue living safely at home.
• Results: Compared to their non-SASH peers, SASH participants have been documented to have better health outcomes, including fewer falls, lower rates of hospitalizations, fewer emergency room visits, and lower Medicare and Medicaid expenditures.

Other Project Examples

Hospital2Home

Updated/reviewed April 2024

• Need: To prevent hospital readmissions and improve the recovery process for older adults in rural southern Ohio.
• Intervention: Hospital2Home identifies individuals who have an elevated risk of hospital readmission and provides vouchers for services like personal care and home-delivered meals.
• Results: In each of the seven years the program has been in operation, over 85% of participants have avoided readmission in the first two months after hospital discharge.

Farm Assessment and Rehabilitation Methods (FARM) Program

Updated/reviewed February 2024

• Need: To help farmers with disabilities continue farming while protecting their well-being.
• Intervention: The FARM program helps disabled or ill farmers continue to operate and work their Wisconsin farms.
• Results: Since 2009, the FARM Program has helped over 3,500 farmers continue to farm, resume farming, or find an alternative agricultural occupation.

Rural Aging Action Network

Updated/reviewed January 2024

• Need: To connect underserved and isolated older adults in rural Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota to services and supports so they can age in place.
• Intervention: The Rural Aging Action Network is a collaborative of organizations that offer different services like caregiver support, behavioral health, financial counseling, and assistance with chores and household maintenance.
• Results: Since 2015, the collaborative has reached over 4,000 older adults and caregivers in over 100 rural communities.

Age-Friendly and Dementia-Friendly Winnemucca

Updated/reviewed August 2023

• Need: To educate rural community members about Alzheimer's disease and other dementias and to support older adults in need.
• Intervention: A community group formed in Winnemucca, Nevada, to discuss topics like health, housing, social events, community improvement, education, and transportation for older adults. The group also provides outreach to older adults, caregiver support, and a variety of of educational activities and events.
• Results: The group's efforts have led to many changes for community welfare and safety as well as opportunities for education and activities.

CAPABLE (Community Aging in Place—Advancing Better Living for Elders)

Updated/reviewed July 2023

• Need: To help older adults age in place.
• Intervention: For five months, CAPABLE participants receive home visits from a registered nurse, occupational therapist, and home repair services.
• Results: There are currently over 35 CAPABLE sites across the country, 11 of which are located in rural communities.

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