News & Highlights

Partnership of multiple organizations gets PACE grant.The Older Adult Branch of the NC Division of Public Health, in partnership with the NC Division of Aging and Adult Services, the NC-Healthy Aging Network (NC-HAN) led by the UNC Institute on Aging and the UNC-CH Program on Aging, and working with the county-based African American group of Parish Nurses, the Mid-Carolina AAA, and the Thurston Arthritis Research Center at UNC-CH, has received a one-year Chronic Disease Directors senior grant that focuses on implementing the evidence-based People with Arthritis Can Exercise (PACE) program with older African-American residents of Cumberland County, NC. This grant will provide resources for: 1) developing recruitment strategies that are tailored to the African American community; 2) adapting and implementing a program and curriculum that is user-friendly and culturally appropriate to African Americans but also maintains fidelity to the core elements of the PACE program; and 3) developing and disseminating a model approach to providing PACE programming within African American communities throughout the state.

Sage Crossroads recognizes HAN activity.Sage Crossroads, an online forum for emerging issues of human aging, noted in a January 10 news release that UNC-CH's Active Living by Design project and the CDC's Healthy Aging Research Network are at the forefront of a new movement called "active living." Planners and public health professionals aim to collaborate to create neighborhoods where residents feel comfortable going out to walk, ride, skate, garden, or jog each day. The NC Healthy Aging Network, spearheaded at UNC-CH by the IOA and the Program on Aging of the School of Medicine, is part of the CDC network.

'Community Participation in Research' grants.NIH has announced grant availability that supports "Community Participation in Research." Participating organizations include NIH, AHRQ, and CDC. Within NIH, at least twelve institutes are participating. The ultimate goal of this research initiative is to support research on health promotion, disease prevention, and health disparities that is jointly conducted by communities and researchers. See more information at http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/.

Checklist determines whether fitness facilities are 'senior friendly'. The International Council on Active Aging has created a checklist seniors can use to determine whether a particular gym, health club or exercise facility will meet their needs in starting and maintaining a physical fitness regimen. The checklist allows the user to evaluate and compare among facilities such factors as accessibility of the building, locker room and exercise area(s), suitablility of equipment and programming for those with physical limitations, and whether the staff is trained to handle health emergencies.