Kentucky Elder Readiness Initiative Seeks to Meet the Needs of Growing Senior Population

The Kentucky Elder Readiness Initiative (KERI) seeks to develop information and provide support to Kentucky’s communities so that elders and their families are provided with the opportunity to age in place and enjoy the highest possible quality of life for the longest time.

Governor Ernie Fletcher

Kentucky’s demographics will begin to change rapidly as Baby Boomers begin entering retirement. People are living longer, healthier lives and have needs and wants that have implications across all aspects of society including health care, recreation, transportation, education, economy, housing, and business.

Recently, Governor Ernie Fletcher urged an audience at a meeting of the Kentuckiana Regional Planning and Development Agency (KIPDA) in Jeffersontown, KY, to start preparing now for a significant increase in the population of Kentuckians age 60 and older. Along with the governor, Cabinet for Health and Family Services Secretary Mark D. Birdwhistell and Dr. Graham Rowles, University of Kentucky Graduate Center for Gerontology, presented KIPDA regional findings from the Kentucky Elder Readiness Initiative (KERI) survey at the meeting.

Preliminary findings from the KERI survey show that most Kentuckians are unaware of the magnitude of the changes Kentucky will confront as a result of the aging of the Baby Boomers—the generation born after World War II.  Focus groups and community forums were held during Phase I of KERI to gather feedback used to develop the survey for Phase II.

Responses to the nearly 9,000 surveys collected earlier this summer were evaluated to determine opportunities and awareness about programs and services for seniors and their caregivers.

Other findings from the KIPDA regional survey include:

• Nearly three-fourths of baby boomers surveyed said they worried about being prepared for retirement, and nearly a quarter of that age group said they never wanted to retire completely. Nearly a third of respondents 62 and older said they continued to work part or full time, and 69 percent said they planned to work during retirement—mainly because it was necessary to make ends meet. Other reasons included a desire to work and to retain health care and other benefits.
  
  
• Nearly 40 percent of older adults who responded to the survey and 62 percent of baby boomers said they were unfamiliar with services available in their communities for people 60 and older.
  
  
• KIPDA respondents believe the aging of the baby boom population will have a negative effect on housing, transportation, health care delivery, tax revenues, funding for services and care-giving for elders. By contrast, residents of the region believe the aging of the population will have a positive effect on government policies, aging services, employment and environmental design.
  
  
• Most KIPDA residents expect to live in their current residences as they age. Nearly 70 percent of baby boomers and 87 percent of older adults said they expected to live in their own homes at age 90. Eleven percent of baby boomers and 10 percent of older adults said they expected to be living in a nursing home at age 90; while more than 30 percent of baby boomers and older adults said they expected to be in assisted living. Survey analysts said the latter finding suggested that the need for affordable variations of this popular housing option would increase in the KIPDA region.

Information gathered from forums like the one held in Jeffersontown will be used to help local communities and state officials prioritize needs and make recommendations for improvement. To meet the needs of communities experiencing an increase in the number of elders, the KERI initiative brings together local organizations, community leaders, and citizens, to form partnerships and collaborations in an effort to be meet the needs of our growing senior population.