KAG Conference 2007 Held in Paintsville; 2008 Conference Planned

Secretary Birdwhistell, Senator Mongiardo Reflect on Aging Issues During the 2007 Kentucky Association for Gerontology Annual Conference, held in Paintsville, Kentucky from April 29–May 1

The conference was attended by more than 100 participants.  The first day of the event offered a Pre-Conference Intensive on Ethics and the Professions in an Aging Society, presented by Mike D. Smith, Ph.D.  During the main conference, participants had the opportunity to hear some very interesting Keynote and Plenary presenters and engage in workshops that provided new and relevant information. KAG’s President, Barbara Gunn, presided over the Conference, and the Mayor of Paintsville, the Honorable Bob Porter, welcomed everyone to the conference and especially to Paintsville. 

The Opening Session provided Commissioner Deborah Anderson, Department for Aging and Independent Living, the opportunity to introduce the Keynote speaker, her boss, the Secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, Mark Birdwhistell. His presentation reflected on the importance of Focus, Funding and Flexibility.  Here is a brief synopsis of some of Secretary Birdwhistell’s comments and quotes:

Focus. Our population is growing older and it is growing older disproportionately than our surrounding states.  We are also a sick state, ranking very high with many of the chronic diseases. Kentucky spends 1.1 billion dollars on obesity-related diseases every year. If we do not do something to change our course, the life expectancy of children born today could potentially be less than their parents.  There are 10,500 persons with mental retardation living with their parents who are over 65. This is another issue that must be addressed as well as the mental health issues for older persons.  Housing and aging in place are also critical pieces of the puzzle and an area of much needed focus now and in the future.  Many seniors do not know what services are available to them. When they find out they do not know how to access them.  Then we do not have enough professionals to assess.  We do not have enough providers to provide the services.  What are we going to do?  We must think outside of the box. There are glimmers of the feds thinking outside of the box. We are putting together a system for addressing these issues.

Funding. We have put together two extensive budgets significantly greater and more targeted than what have been issued in the past twenty years. Now that the new Department of Aging and Independent Living has been established, there will be coordination across programs and services to expand funding.

Flexibility. The Cabinet is engaging in a long term living initiative. We have revised the Certificate of Need requirement in the state health care sector. Healthcare construction is happening throughout the state in decentralized locations back in the community. Medicaid reform has allowed different services to different populations and we are working to make the programs more flexible. The flexibility is the glue that pulls everything together. We will save over one billion dollars over the next 10 years. 

Tuesday’s Plenary featured Senator Daniel Mongiardo. Senator Mongiardo’s presentation focused on “Future Trends in Aging: A Report on the White House Conference on Aging.” The Senator described the biomedical and lifestyle treatments that are available now to prevent or delay the debilitating effects of aging. Medical advances in the treatment of physical disease have increased both length and quality of life for older Americans. We have a population that is better educated and aware of the importance of good physical, mental and social health. Twenty-first century medicine must focus on primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention throughout life.

During the Awards Luncheon, Commissioner Anderson provided information about the goals and objectives of the Department for Aging and Independent Living. She also talked about the rollout of the Kentucky Aging and Disability Resource Market. The Awards presentation honored recipients for a variety of KAG Awards. The KAG Distinguished Educator Award was received by Dr. Noell Rowan; the KAG distinguished Practitioner Award was received by Wendy Bauer; and the Lois E. Layne Award was received by Lori M. Paris. (See the article in this issue to read more about these awards.)

Concurrent sessions and workshops were held throughout the conference. Attendees had the opportunity to participate in sessions covering:

• Successful Aging
• Civic Engagement
• Diversity
• Protection and Safety