A happy dance—that’s what I did when I learned that the Age-Friendly Health Systems (AFHS) movement has reached a significant milestone with 1,956 participants achieving Level 1 or Level 2 designation. The American Geriatrics Society is so pleased to have contributed to this achievement as an active partner in the Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative that is led by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) and The John A. Hartford Foundation (JAHF), in partnership with the American Hospital Association (AHA) and the Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA).
We are #AGSProud that our own Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program (GWEP) AFHS action community is a part of this success! Launched in January 2020, 92 percent of the community's participating GWEPs and 96 percent of their primary care partners have achieved at least a Level 1 AFHS designation as an AFHS participant. (Organizations participating in the movement adopt and demonstrate progress toward implementation of the 4Ms framework, which represents improvement practices that build on the strongest evidence available and provide the fastest outcomes for older adults.) This level of commitment is a huge accomplishment, given that we established our action community just as the COVID-19 virus arrived in the United States, and our GWEP leaders, faculty, and staff--along with their primary care partners--have been on the front lines of caring for older adults during the pandemic.
AGS has long recognized that, in order to ensure that older adults have access to high-quality, person-centered care informed by geriatrics principles, we need to advocate for programs and policies that support all health professionals achieving competency in caring for older adults as a part of their training. Our Geriatrics-for-Specialists Initiative (GSI) and a parallel program for the subspecialities of internal medicine, both supported by JAHF and the Atlantic Philanthropies, were focused on achieving that goal, and a number of our specialty champions that are participating in the AFHS movement.
The results the initiative has seen so far are a signal that there is a growing interest in adopting evidence-based approaches to achieve better care for us all as we age. It is important to note that 85 percent of the movement’s growth came in the last 10 months, as we grappled with an unprecedented public health emergency that has had a disproportionate impact on older adults and communities of color. To me, this further highlights the value of the AFHS initiative and its guiding framework that is focused on the 4Ms; what Matters, Medication, Mentation, and Mobility are the foundation for how geriatrics health professionals care for older adults with Multicomplexity, a concept that encompasses multimorbidity and complicated biopsychosocial needs.
With our AFHS partners, we applaud and celebrate the almost 2,000 participants in the Age-Friendly Health System movement who have committed to employing the 4M framework and are now leading the way in ensuring that all Americans have access to high-quality, person-centered care that is informed by geriatrics principles and is free of ageism and other discrimination.
Here at the AGS, we will continue to support GWEPS and their partners as they continue to focus on delivering age-friendly care to their communities. We encourage our AGS members to learn more about the Age-Friendly Health Systems movement at ihi.org/AgeFriendly. Many of you are already engaged with AFHS work, and we believe that all of you are positioned to lead change in your own systems and communities so that we all receive the best care as we age.