Aging in Our Community A Message from W. Mark Clark, President and CEO
Strengthening Community Connections
Falls Prevention Awareness Week 2022 When many of us think of our loved ones who have experienced a cascade of hospitalizations and health procedures, the initial precipitating event can often be traced back to a fall. As we note each year about this time, falling is the leading cause of fatal and non-fatal injuries in people 65 and older, and one in four older adults have a fall each year. Like many of you I suspect, I know this from personal experience. The good news is that there are many steps we can take to reduce this risk. Falls Prevention Awareness Week takes place September 18-24, but preventing falls is a year-round effort that all of us at PCOA take very seriously. One of the main goals of our suite of Healthy Living classes is to empower older adults to manage their health and wellbeing so they can maintain their independence and quality of life. Some examples of our classes include A Matter of Balance, EnhanceFitness, The Aging Mastery Program and more. The Healthy Living suite of classes covers things like the cause of falls and how to prevent them, strategies to bolster physical fitness and balance, as well as other ways to empower older adults to keep themselves safe and healthy. Falls Prevention is a community effort that should be taken seriously not only by older adults but also for those who care for them. In this issue of Never Too Late you will find pointers, classes, special events and resources to prevent falls for yourself and those you love.
HomeMatch Pima Over the past two years or so, PCOA researched national homesharing models with the intention of establishing a county-wide program to match older homeowners with homesharers in meaningful and affordable ways. The goal was to create stable housing for older adults to age in place with social connections and dignity. With the generous support from the Tucson Industrial Development Authority (IDA), Pima County Board of Supervisors, and the City of Tucson, we spoke with dozens of interested community members, and met with small groups who shared their interests, commitments—and concerns. Our exploratory journey uncovered several considerations that limit our ability to make homesharing matches at this time. We have learned that people remain deeply cautious about sharing their homes with non-family members in this era of COVID-19. Additionally, homesharing in Arizona (in which a homeowner is matched with a homesharer) may be considered a landlord-tenant relationship which adds legal considerations and complications to the process. Because of that we believe more advocacy work needs to be done, which we plan on doing. While PCOA is unable to continue HomeMatch Pima at this time, we remain committed to advocating for affordable housing solutions—including possible homesharing options and developing innovative programs to meet the needs
of older adults in our community. In the meantime, we are providing information about housing resources on our website at https://pcoa.org/ways-we-help/ housing.html/ Community Needs Assessment Every few years PCOA conducts a community needs assessment to ensure that we have a deep understanding of the needs and experiences of older adults in our community. This information helps us tailor our programs and services to the current and pressing needs of people right here in Pima County. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic our previously scheduled community needs assessment was postponed, meaning this is the first assessment we are conducting in six years and we need your help! All Pima County residents age 50 or older are eligible to participate in the Community Needs Assessment. We want to hear from as many people as possible to ensure we have a robust picture of the needs of people in our community. Please visit needs.pcoa.org to complete the assessment today!
W.Mark Clark President & CEO
September 2022, Never Too Late | Page 3
Pima Council on Aging
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