Two organizations are hoping to combat these issues and improve the lives of older adults. On September 14, the WellSky Foundation—a nonprofit dedicated to improving the livelihood of vulnerable populations—announced its $50,000 donation to Meals on Wheels America. The contribution is intended to fund a collaborative research project designed to combat social isolation and hunger in the older adult population.
“We know health is a combination of an individual’s circumstances that influence their overall wellbeing,” Bill Miller, CEO of WellSky, tells Verywell. “With this in mind, it was a natural fit for us to partner with Meals on Wheels America in support of their mission to provide seniors with connection, community, and nutritious meals.”
Partnership Objectives
The joint research project will expand on Meals on Wheels America’s efforts to use technology to report, track, and address changes in older adults who receive home-delivered meals. With WellSky Foundation’s commitment, Meals on Wheels will now be able to broaden its efforts to include helping healthcare organizations support older adults.
“While this pilot project is focused on seniors transitioning from acute care settings or those facing multiple chronic health conditions, the technology being used in this project can be leveraged to support seniors at any time,” Lucy Theilheimer, Chief Strategy and Impact Officer for Meals on Wheels America, tells Verywell.
Putting Technology-Based Research into Practice
During the pilot phase, the project will give delivery personnel mobile devices that have the ServTracker Mobile Meals app, which captures data on observed changes in an older adult’s physical or mental status.
Theilheimer says that the most important information to be gleaned from the data will be “the degree to which seniors are better able to stay healthy and safe in their homes and avoid the need for high-cost healthcare.”
The delivery personnel will immediately relay the information to their program’s care coordinator. The care coordinator will follow up with the older adult and take action. For example, they might contact social services or healthcare providers. The data collected from ServTracker will be shared with healthcare providers to help facilitate ongoing monitoring of older adults deemed at high-risk for hospitalization.
Causes and Consequences of Hunger & Isolation
The high cost of healthcare in the U.S. affects everyone, but certain groups are at particular risk. Therefore, it’s important for healthcare providers, caregivers, and the general population to understand the causes and consequences of food insecurity and social isolation in older adults.
Food Insecurity
In some cases, whether or not an older adult has enough access to healthy foods will depend on their zip code. “For aging people in rural areas, access to nutritious meals, and even the transportation needed to access meals and care can be a barrier to their long-term wellness,” Miller says.
Food insecurity isn’t limited to older adults living in rural areas; urban areas can also be affected. Miller explains that people living in “food deserts” don’t just struggle to easily access nutritious foods—they also don’t have the resources to buy them.
Social Isolation
Human beings need human connection, but many older adults are socially isolated, which increases their risk of illness. In fact, the CDC considers social isolation in older adults to be a public health issue that can lead to dementia and premature death.
The pandemic has made social isolation even more of a challenge. To combat this, Theilheimer says that many Meals on Wheels America programs provide a contactless meal delivery service that allows staff and volunteers to briefly chat with seniors. The network has also expanded its telephone reassurance programs and is enlisting volunteers to write letters to older adults.
How Health Policy-Makers Can Help
While these measures are impactful at the organizational level, aid is also needed from lawmakers in Washington. “Investing in the social service infrastructure in this country–in community-based organizations, like Meals on Wheels–could be a gamechanger," Theilheimer says. She adds that a bolder step would be to include nutrition services as a covered benefit under Medicare and Medicaid.
“There are many possibilities and potential solutions we can explore," Miller says. “At WellSky, we’re also thinking about new payment models, like Medicare Advantage and how those can open up new possibilities for care coordination.”
Advocating for more legislature that would improve older adult health is not only a win for the population itself; healthcare systems would also benefit from fewer older adults being hospitalized because of food insecurity and isolation.
Fighting to reduce social isolation and hunger in the older adult population has been a long, uphill battle, and one that has been further complicated by the COVID-19 pandemic. With this new collaborative effort, there is reason to hope that innovative ways to improve older adults’ well-being are on the horizon.
“Together, we’re working to create a new model of care coordination that can be applied at scale across organizations and across the U.S.,” Miller says. “At the end of the day, our goal is to help more seniors in more places.”
If you have a loved one who is over the age of 65, it’s crucial to their health and wellbeing that you ensure that their dietary and social needs are being met.
