Cross-Sector Partnerships for Community-Based Older Adult Health Promotion Programming.

Abstract

Most older adults reside independently in community settings. Access to information, programs and services to help older adults maintain their independence is very important. However, these resources are not always available or accessible to older adults, particularly those with limited financial resources, barriers to transportation, or health conditions that impact engagement or participation in community settings. King County, Washington (the greater Seattle area) supports a wide range of human services programs funded through a voter-approved property tax levy, the Veterans, Seniors and Human Services Levy. A portion of the Levy specifically funds programs, services and resources for older adults. The Senior Health Promotion investment strategy focused on delivering health promotion programs, prioritizing communities experiencing health disparities. This investment strategy had two parts: program funding to community-based organizations to deliver health promotion programming directly to their communities, and program support funding to an entity to provide implementation support and technical assistance to program awardees. Objectives for the investment included increasing access and reach of health promotion programs, delivering culturally-relevant programs in diverse communities, and offering program implementation support. Using the RE-AIM framework, we present an observational program evaluation summarizing program delivery and implementation capacity among community-based organization program awardees, and how a government-community-academic partnership contributed to reaching the investment objectives.