Abstract
Introduction: According to the World Health Organization, in 2019, there were one billion people aged 60 years and older. This number is projected to rise to 2.1 billion by 2050. There is a growing acknowledgement that older adults prefer to age in place—a concept that has gained policy attention in many countries, including Canada. However, older adults living in the community often experience loneliness and other health consequences. Our existing service model, which is heavily focused on disease and lacks the involvement of service users, is not adequately prepared to address the diverse social and healthcare needs of older adults living in naturally occurring retirement communities (NORCs). NORC is an unplanned community with a large proportion of older adults. This paper aims to describe a NORC-based program, Oasis, and explore how it could serve as a model for integrated care for older adults living in NORCs. The Oasis model is based on the Oasis Senior Supportive Living program (www.oasis-aging-in-place.com) developed in 2011 with a group of older adults living in a Kingston, Ontario, apartment building to address the problem of social isolation and its associated health risks. Through Oasis, older adults identify needs and interests, and a coordinator helps implement programming that fosters social connection, physical activity, and health and well-being. Since 2018, the Oasis Program has been implemented in 18 NORCs across Canada.
Approach: Researchers from three Canadian universities in collaboration with older adults designed and implemented a longitudinal study to assess the influence of Oasis on social isolation and healthy aging. The research team adopted quasi-experimental, comparative multiple case study design using mixed methods. The research team is collecting both qualitative and quantitative data from older adults living in NORCs with and without Oasis. The team is also interviewing landlords who have hosted the Oasis in their building to understand their perspectives on the implementation process and the benefits that the Oasis program could bring to older adults and society.
Results: Findings to date indicate that the Oasis program enhances a perceived sense of community among older adults, engages them in meaningful activities, and enables increased physical activity. We have also learned from participants that Oasis has increased older adults' access to key services, such as dental care, hearing aids, vaccine clinics and other public health interventions, without going outside of their building. Additionally, our early data indicate that having Oasis in a building contributes to transforming the building's atmosphere and enhancing the building's reputation.
Implications: We perceive Oasis to be aligned with integrated care and has enormous potential to offer and bring services closer to older adults living in NORCs. All the outcomes we observed in our preliminary analysis are encouraging and keep older adults physically and mentally healthy. This, in turn, will reduce pressure on the healthcare system and long-term care homes, eventually saving taxpayers money that the government uses to support publicly funded programs. Service providers and researchers working with older adults may replicate the Oasis model in their context.