On Tuesday 31 March, the John Richards Centre for Rural Aging Research (JRC) marked the completion of the Indigo 4Ms in the Community project and launched the final report.
The event was a great opportunity to thank participants and showcase how community-based adoption of a guide to support older people to undertake age-friendly health care actions aligned with the Indigo 4Ms - An age-friendly guide to living well - is supporting healthy ageing across north-east Victoria.
Supporting communities to become age friendly is one of the most effective strategies to create thriving places in which everyone can live, learn, work, play and age to the best of their abilities.
“The Indigo 4Ms shows how research can translate into practical, age-friendly actions when it’s grounded in what matters to older people and shaped with communities,” said Kathleen Brasher, Research Fellow, JRC.
Attendees heard from Dr Anthony Zheng, Ovens Murray Public Health Unit, and the team from the Mount Beauty Neighbourhood Centre as they shared how the program had supported healthy ageing across the region.
The project found that:
- The guide provided clear, easy information: Older people said the guide improved their ability to understand and engage with health information and was easy to read and use.
- The guide helped older people to be better prepared for appointments: The guide helped older people clarify their concerns, feel more confident, and have greater control during discussions with health professionals.
- Community settings matter: Neighbourhood Houses and other community organisations play an important role in creating environments where everyone can age well.
About the Indigo 4Ms
The Indigo 4Ms is an evidence-informed, age-friendly approach that focuses on what matters to older people, alongside medication, mobility and mental wellbeing - supporting shared decision-making and personalised planning across health and community settings.
About the project
With support from the State Trustees Australia Foundation, the JRC team partnered with older people and rural organisations across four small rural towns in north-east Victoria to develop strategies and resources to support older people in rural communities to use the Indigo 4Ms in their everyday lives. As well as developing the tool – An Age Friendly Guide to Living Well - community action teams worked together to promote the tool through developing and promoting educational videos and brochures, peer education manuals, and embedding it into community activities and health care organisations.
Read more
Read the Report, and a list of all of the publicly accessible resources produced as part of the project, can be accessed on the website here.
