Lynn Buckley, Health Care Partnership Developer

A total of 66 participants, representing health systems and community organizations, attended MNRAAA’s Healthy Living as You Age Regional Summits on April 5 in North Mankato and April 6 in Marshall.

The objectives of the Summit were to:

  • Provide an overview of the statewide initiative to broaden the reach of evidence-based health promotion workshops
  • Discuss the value of a culture shift toward healthy living and the role of evidence-based self-management programs
  • Identify collective opportunities and determine the organizing structure to support MNRAAA’s efforts
  • Develop a collective strategy and action plan, including clear next steps and a call to action

The overarching goal of the Healthy Living as You Age initiative is to build a statewide network of evidence-based health promotion programs for health systems and community-based organizations, reimbursed by health plans, and supported by a centralized referral and management information system. This initiative can: improve health and independence; reduce dependence on family and non-family caregivers; reduce utilization of costly care; improve the lives of those living in long-term care and congregate housing settings; provide the opportunity to expand service offerings for community organizations; reduce hospital readmissions; prevent escalation of disease; and create a healthier Minnesota.

Following presentations by key stakeholders, participants self-selected into one of five work groups and discussed the following topics:

  • Building Delivery Capacity in the Community
  • Building Delivery Capacity within Health Systems
  • Establishing Reliable Referral Pathways in the Community
  • Establishing Reliable Referral Pathways within Health Systems
  • Identifying and Securing Opportunities for Sustainability

The next step will be to schedule work group meetings to delve deeper into the above topics, while continuing to expand the evidence-based health promotion capacity throughout MNRAAA’s service area.

If you are interested in learning more about The Healthy Living as You Age initiative, or if you wish to join a work group, contact Lynn Buckley at lbuckley@mnraaa.org or 507.995.0454.

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