U.S. Population is Aging
According to the US Census Bureau, the US population aged 65+ years is expected to nearly double over the
next 30 years, from 43.1 million in 2012 to an estimated 83.7 million in 2050.
These demographic advances, however extraordinary, have left our health systems behind as many of us
struggle to reliably provide evidence-based practice to every older adult at every care interaction.
What Is an Age-Friendly Health System?
Age-Friendly Health Systems is an initiative of The John A. Hartford Foundation and the Institute for
Healthcare Improvement (IHI), in partnership with the American Hospital Association (AHA) and the
Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA), designed to meet this challenge head on.
Age-Friendly Health Systems aim to:
- Follow an essential set of evidence-based practices;
- Cause no harm; and
- Align with What Matters to the older adult and their family caregivers
What Does It Mean to Be an Age-Friendly Health System?
Becoming an Age-Friendly Health System entails reliably providing a set of four evidence-based elements
of high-quality care, known as the “4Ms,” to all older adults in your system: What Matters, Medication,
Mentation, and Mobility.
4Ms Framework of an Age-Friendly Health System
| What Matters |
|---|
| Know and align care with each older adult’s specific health outcome goals and care preferences including, but not limited to, end-of-life care, and across settings of care. |
| Medication |
| If medication is necessary, use Age-Friendly medication that does not interfere with What Matters to the older adult, Mobility, or Mentation across settings of care. |
| Mentation |
| Prevent, identify, treat, and manage dementia, depression, and delirium across settings of care. |
| Mobility |
| Ensure that older adults move safely every day in order to maintain function and do What Matters. |
Learn more about: How to Practice the 4Ms by Care Setting
Join the Age-Friendly Health Systems Movement
Three ways to Join
Action Communities, Do-It-Yourself Participation, and Scale-up Accelerator are available to health systems and individuals.
Recognition
Become recognized as an Age-Friendly Health System.
Getting Started Guides
Guides and other resources to support your Age-Friendly Health System journey.
For Consultant Pharmacists:
The Pharmacist-Led Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative is a collaborative effort between the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists (ASCP) and The Peter Lamy Center on Drug Therapy and Aging (Lamy Center). Our goal is to support older adults and their caregivers in navigating the complexities of medication management. This innovative initiative, “Leveraging Pharmacists as Age-Friendly Health Systems 4Ms Champions,” takes a fresh approach by harnessing the expertise of long-term care pharmacies and pharmacists specializing in the care of older adults.
Resources:
- Resources to Practice Age Friendly Care
- Age-Friendly Health Systems Recognition
- Questions for program administrators can be directed to AFHS@ihi.org
- What is an Age-Friendly Health Systems? (YouTube video: 2.13 mins)
