Age-Friendly Health Systems

Join the movement to make your health system age-friendly

|| Also visit our Age-Friendly Care page for Older Adults and Family Caregivers ||

Age-Friendly Health Systems Initiative

We all deserve safe, evidence-based health care focused on what matters to us as we get older. That's age-friendly care.

Age-Friendly Health Systems is an initiative of The John A. Hartford Foundation and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in partnership with the American Hospital Association and the​ Catholic Health Association of the United States.

It's a movement helping hospitals, medical practices, retail pharmacy clinics, nursing homes, home-care providers and others deliver age-friendly care.

What is an Age-Friendly Health System?


Age-Friendly Health Systems:


  • Follow an essential set of evidence-based practices in a framework known as the 4Ms;
  • Cause no harm; and
  • Align with What Matters to the older adult and their family caregivers.​

In an Age-Friendly Health System, value is optimized for all — patients, families, caregivers, health care providers, and the overall system.


      The 4Ms of Age-Friendly Care:

      WebMD Videos: Watch Age-Friendly Care in Action

      A university health center

      WebMD visits Madsen Health Center in Utah, a great example of an age-friendly care provider that considers all of the 4Ms to really understand the patient.

      A retail pharmacy clinic

      When providers ask about a patient’s goals, medications, memory and mobility, they feel heard, says nurse practitioner Sidney Hunt of MinuteClinic at CVS.

      A Veterans Affairs medical center

      Arthur’s providers at the VA in Salt Lake City are working to get him back to his favorite pastime – fishing in Alaska.

       

      This map shows hospitals, practices, and nursing homes recognized by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement as Age-Friendly Health Systems Participants:

      3,546 Sites Recognized as Age-Friendly Health Systems

      Rapid Growth

      IHI has recognized 3,546 hospitals, practices and long-term care organizations as Age-Friendly Health Systems Participants and Committed to Care Excellence as of January 2024.

      Age-Friendly Health Systems action communities, led by IHI and AHA, test the 4Ms Framework in hospital and ambulatory settings, sharing learnings in a virtual community.

      Join the Movement

      The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) is recruiting for the next Age-Friendly Health System Action Community, a seven-month, free learning opportunity convening spring 2024.
      Learn more in the Invitation to Join and sign up.

      More information on other ways to join the movement can be found at IHI.org/AgeFriendly.

      What We're Learning

      Other articles include:

      For a complete list of publications and news coverage, click here.
      To watch Kedar Mate, MD, talk about his grandmother and age-friendly care, click here.

      Age-Friendly Health Systems Survey

      WebMD and JAHF published a consumer survey report of older adults, "Driving Toward Age-Friendly Care for the Future." The survey asked 2,700+ older adults and family caregivers about age-friendly health systems, and their attitudes to and experiences with the “4Ms” of care—the essential set of elements that systems need to address for older adults: what matters, medication, mentation, and mobility. Data were segmented by sex, race/ethnicity, and chronic conditions, as well as other factors.

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