Improving Health Requires More Than Better Health Care - Terry Fulmer Writes about Rural Aging

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Terry Fulmer, PhD, RN, FAAN, President of The John A. Hartford Foundation, has written a blog published on Next Avenue, "Improving Health Requires More Than Better Health Care for Rural Older Adults."

"Where and how we live affects our health in powerful and dramatic ways, especially as we age. Take, for example, the documented connection between living in a rural area, experiencing the effects of poverty and the high likelihood of having multiple chronic conditions. The World Health Organization describes these “social determinants” of health as “the circumstances in which people are born, grow up, live, work, age and the systems put in place to deal with illness.”

Dr. Fulmer discusses collaborative work between local and national organizations and promising interventions, such as the Rural Aging Initiative of Grantmakers in Aging, Friends of Aroostook farm cooperative, and age-friendly communities.

This blog is part of an ongoing series in which Dr. Fulmer explores the challenges surrounding care for older adults in rural communities.


To read the blog, click here.
To go to Next Avenue's special report, Strengthening Rural Health Care for Older Adults, click here.