The event engaged 89 consumers, and health care providers and researchers in a day dedicated to showcasing the latest healthy ageing research being undertaken in Adelaide and across Australia by leading researchers and higher degree students of the CRE Frailty & Healthy Ageing, GTRAC and their collaborating partners. Rosa Colanero, the Chief Executive of Multicultural Aged Care South Australia (MACSA), and CRE advisory board member, was the host for the event and her enthusiasm and passion made the event thoroughly engaging.
The morning session included seminars from researchers on a wide range of topics. Dr Mandy Archibald discussed her work using consumer perspectives on frailty and ageing to shape future research and knowledge translation. Dr Joanne Dollard presented information on the early stages of a clinical trial she is undertaking using technology to prevent falls in hospitalised older people. Dr Kareeann Khow discussed haemoglobin levels and health outcomes following hip fracture surgery. Dr Anupam Datta Gupta explained the benifits of exercise on the brain and healthy ageing. Dr Agathe Jadczak discussed the importance of educating medical students how to prescribe exercise to older patients.
Professor John Morley, a renowned geriatrician from St Louis University (SLU), Missouri USA and lead of the International Consensus Committee on Frailty was the keynote speaker for the event. Professor Morley gave an interactive, informative and entertaining discussion on ‘The Science of Staying Young’. Professor Morley also took part in the afternoon’s panel discussion with Dr Helen Barrie and Mr Mark Thompson on ‘Lifestyle Choices for Healthy Ageing’. Dr Barrie, Deputy Director of the Hugo Centre of Migration and Population Research and Research Fellow at the University of Adelaide is a geographer whose research examines the changing demography of Australia’s population with particular attention to our ageing population and population diversity and the implications of these changes for society and local communities. Mr Thompson is a PhD Candidate with the CRE and an occupational therapist with extensive experience in ageing rehabilitation and a research focus on the epidemiology of frailty. The expert panel answered many diverse and thought provoking questions from the audience.
In the afternoon there were table top discussions between researchers and guests on a variety of topics ranging from simplifying medication use, improving models of care to frailty screening and prevalence mapping. These sessions also gave the researchers valuable feedback on areas and topics that consumers see as research priorities.
This was the second CRE Research Showcase event and the larger, capacity attendance at this year’s event demonstrates the increasing public interest in research to improve the health, wellbeing and independence of our ageing population.
