Award-Winning Purpose-Based Wellness Programming
Purpose-Based Wellness is a national award-winning program for seniors to combat chronic diseases and ailments commonly found among the aging population. It was developed in 2011 by the Senior Living Communities Wellness Department and continues to incorporate innovative classes with proven results. Let’s learn more about this program and its benefits:
Managing Health
First, and most importantly, this programming initiative offers Members an opportunity to manage, or even improve their health as they age while minimizing the need for direct clinical support. For chronic conditions like Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias, Arthritis, COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), Type 2 Diabetes, Heart Health, Osteoporosis, Chronic Pain, Sarcopenia, and more, physical activity is vital for management.
Almost anyone, at any age, can do some type of physical activity. Exercise can be performed even with a health condition like heart disease, arthritis, chronic pain, high blood pressure, or diabetes. In fact, physical activity may help improve the condition. For most older adults, physical activities like brisk walking, riding a stationary bike, swimming, weightlifting, and gardening are safe. Building up slowly to higher intensity exercises is recommended.
Purpose Based Wellness Overview
In 2011, Senior Living Communities saw the need for a supplemental program focusing on combating chronic diseases and ailments commonly found in the aging population. These needs are addressed by providing Members with wellness programs, classes, and lectures. This allows them to manage certain chronic diseases and symptoms by seeking to prevent avoidable health events such as falls.
Purpose Based Wellness is unique to our community as it is a hybrid program that encompasses elements of both clinical rehabilitation and regular exercise. It utilizes the prescriptive benefits of rehabilitation (flexibility, dexterity, cardiovascular health, balance, etc.) in fitness classes/1-on-1 training.The Programming is not designed to replace rehabilitation but rather to enhance the current long-term care model. In the current system, an older adult typically has to suffer a negative health event or participate in an elective surgery before gaining access to rehabilitative services. Following that event, most adults use their medical benefits to access rehabilitation, but those benefits have specific time limits. Purpose-based Programming complements the physical benefits received in rehabilitation. This is done by offering a deliberately measured approach for adults as they leave a skilled nursing center in hope of reducing the amount of care needed for everyday life.