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New Resource! Tips to Support Older Adults’ Well-Being from engAGED and the Eldercare Locator 

engAGED partnered with the Eldercare Locator (also administered by USAging) to produce our newest consumer brochure, Staying OK: Tips for Supporting Your Social Connections and Emotional Wellness. The brochure provides social engagement tips and tools to help older adults stay connected to their communities during difficult times such as the ongoing waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the brochure includes guidance to connect consumers to mental health services and other supports available locally. The brochure is available in both English and Spanish and is customizable so you can add your organization’s logo and contact information before distributing. 

Submit Your Social Engagement Programs!

Does your organization run an innovative social engagement program that serves older adults, people with disabilities and/or caregivers? Then consider submitting it for inclusion in the engAGED Innovations Hub—a searchable database of best and promising practices that promote social engagement among older adults, people with disabilities and caregivers. Before submitting your social engagement program(s), read through the eligibility criteria and submission questions. 

engAGED and Commit to Connect Virtual Summit: Key Takeaways

Our latest blog post highlights some of the key points discussed during the engAGED and Commit to Connect Virtual Social Engagement Summit aimed at promoting social connectedness across ages, abilities and communities. During the Summit, researchers and national, state and local leaders, shared the latest social engagement research and examples of social engagement programs and practices. The blog post summarizes both days and includes timestamps for the recordings for each section.

Ways to Promote Engagement Among Consumers in October

Did you know the engAGED Community Awareness Toolkit includes a calendar of social engagement opportunities? Organized by month, the calendar offers organizations ideas to promote social engagement when celebrating observances and holidays with consumers throughout the year. The month of October is recognized as National Arts and Humanities Month with additional observances such as Active Aging Week and National Train Your Brain Day.

In recognition of National Arts and Humanities Month, your organization may consider organizing a virtual or in-person visit to a local art gallery, offering an art class for consumers, or reaching out to a local arts group to partner on an event or educational opportunity. For National Train Your Brain Day (October 13), consider engaging older adults with a puzzle or encouraging them to learn a new skill.

Global Developments in Social Prescribing

In this article, social prescribing, or connecting individuals to necessary non-clinical social supports, was examined in 17 countries across the globe. The study gleans lessons learned that can be applied at the local level for tailored social prescribing interventions.

Associations of Social Isolation and Loneliness With Later Dementia

Research from this cohort study completed in the UK looked at the independent relationships between social isolation and loneliness with dementia. Findings suggest that social isolation is a risk factor for dementia (independent of loneliness) and social isolation may be considered an early indicator for an increased risk of dementia later on.

Housing Unit Type and Perceived Social Isolation Among Senior Housing Community Residents

This journal article from The Gerontologist studies the association of types of housing units within a senior housing community and perceived social isolation amongst older adults. The results found the built environment has an impact on perceived social isolation, with older adults living in a townhome-style housing unit having approximately a 10 percent less chance of reporting social isolation as a result of living in this type of housing unit, compared with those living in an apartment building-style unit.

Serving People Living with Dementia: Programs and Interventions to Promote Social Engagement

engAGED hosted a webinar focused on social engagement for people living with dementia. Speakers included the Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center, Pima Council on Aging and the Gateway Geriatric Education Center. Check out the webinar recording or slides to learn more!

New Additions to the Innovations Hub

Be sure to check out the engAGED Innovations Hub to see the nine new program summaries recently added! These nine programs are recipients of USAging Aging Innovations and Achievement Awards and highlight replicable ideas for social engagement programs. Explore these and many others through the searchable database.

• County Health Rankings & Roadmaps recently hosted the webinar, Making Social Connections for Community Health, featuring Eddie Garcia, Executive Director and Founder of The Foundation for Social Connection, and Risa Wilkerson, Executive Director at Healthy Places by Design. The webinar highlighted research on the health benefits of strong social connections and discussed policies and systemic inequities that keep people isolated.

• Interested in supporting the work of kinship/grandfamilies programs and policies? The Grandfamilies & Kinship Support Network (Network) is seeking to identify and designate exemplary kinship/grandfamilies policies, practices, and programs through the Exemplary Kinship/Grandfamilies Policies, Practices, and Program Application process. The Network is inviting submissions from government agencies in states, territories, and tribes, as well as private kinship navigator programs and other community-based organizations that serve grandfamilies and kinship families. Learn more and submit your policies, practices or programs by November 16.

• Check out this podcast from First State Insights on intergenerational service learning to hear more about Lori's Hands, an exemplary program and Community Care Corps grantee. Recent research on supporting homebound older adults and caregivers through service learning featured this program and Lori's Hands is also one of many programs featured on engAGED's Innovations Hub.

• The ATI Advisory has produced an informative brief, Senior Living Communities: Uniquely Positioned to Reduce Social Isolation and Promote Social Connection. Based on multiple interviews and an extensive literature review, the analysis identifies best practices for senior living communities to reduce social isolation and improve health outcomes. 

• One roommate is 85, the other is 27. Such arrangements are growing. (The Washington Post, July 15, 2022)
• The pandemic was rough on seniors. These students started a pen pal program to keep them company (CBC News, August 2, 2022)
• Having a partner more important than children to staving off loneliness during pandemic, new study finds (The University of Rhode Island, August 3, 2022)
• Loneliness among older people: A research roundup and 5 tips for covering the topic (The Good Men Project, August 6, 2022)
• Long-term loneliness tied to risk for memory decline (Physician's Weekly, August 8, 2022)
• Social isolation, loneliness increase risk of fatal heart attacks and strokes (Everyday Health, August 12, 2022)
• National group launches #RespectYourElders campaign- here's how to get involved (Seniors Matter, August 13, 2022)
• FSU study uses computer tech to combat loneliness in older adults (Tallahasee Democrat, September 19, 2022)

• Virtual Event: Foundation for Social Connection’s 2022 End Social Isolation and Loneliness Action Forum (October 11-13, 2022)

This project #90EECC0002 is supported by the Administration for Community Living (ACL), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $450,000 (or 74 percent) funded by ACL/HHS and $161,554 (or 26 percent) funded by non-government sources. The contents are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by ACL/HHS, or the U.S. Government.