Upcoming senior expo chance to highlight offerings for older patients

Meritus Health will be hosting an event for seniors next month.

The Fall Into Better Health Senior Expo is planned from 9 a.m. to noon Nov. 9 in the Atrium and Room 142 in the Robinwood Professional Center, 11110 Medical Campus Road.

And while the free expo will offer folks health tips and information, let’s not detract from the many programs and activities Meritus has in place year-round designed to help those 55 and older live their best lives.

“We want seniors to be able to age healthily,” said Beth Fields Dowdell, DNP, CRNP, director of Community Health and Outpatient Care Management. “We want people to live a long healthy life.”

Meritus is part of the 20% of the nation's hospitals to have joined in the Age-Friendly Health Systems initiative, Fields Dowdell noted. That means the health system focuses on important ways to keep older patients safe and supported.

For example, Meritus offers a safe place to walk in the Robinwood Professional Center, she said. Anyone, not just seniors, can use the hallways of the building to get in exercise out of the weather and away from vehicles.

The assistance provided to older patients isn’t just passive, though.

Meritus offers diabetes and prediabetes education. The classes are a comprehensive resource for people diagnosed with diabetes, prediabetes, of for those who want nutritional assistance. To learn more about the classes, visit www.meritushealth.com/DiabetesEducation.

Meritus also offers a quarterly gathering for those 55 and older, known as Your Health Matters. The setting offers lunch, an activity and a speaker meant to offer older patients tips on living.

“The program offers tips on many aspects of aging such as meal prep, how to perform chair exercises, and many other things that can help improve quality of life,” Fields Dowdell said.

The next gathering has not been scheduled, but keep an eye on the calendar at www.meritushealth.com/about/events.

Probably one of the farthest-reaching programs Meritus offers is its Care Callers. Though not exclusive to older patients, they tend to make up the majority of participants.

Loneliness and social isolation have been shown to impact life expectancy as much as smoking, obesity and physical inactivity. To combat this, Care Callers uses 81 volunteers and two staff to call 350 health system patients who have indicated they are lonely. Each week, the patient and caller converse for 15 minutes to a half hour.

Since its inception in November 2021, more than 700 patients have participated, and 95% of the patients in the program report feeling less lonely after four months.

To learn more about the program, visit www.MeritusHealth.com/carecallers.