Reimagine Ageing Showcase

1. An autonomous calibration for IMUs using sensor architecture and machine learning techniques: Meernah Mohammed Alabdullah, Ahmad Abdullah, Sheng Quan Xie, Aiqin Liu.
2. The effects of visual impairment on prehension and beyond: The efficacy of second-eye cataract surgery: Rachel Coats, William Sheppard, Richard M Wilkie, Carlo Campagnoli, Rigmor Baraas.
3. The role of ageing and the gut microbiome in fruit fly socially-driven plasticity: Emily Churchill, Megan Fairweather, Lisa Collins, Xavier Harrison, Amanda Bretman.
4. Real-time identification of “long lie” condition in the elderly: Riska Analia, Anne Forster, Sheng Quan Xie, Zhi-Qiang Zhang.
5. Identifying digitally excluded older people: An analysis of the qualitative data from the INCLUDE study survey: Thomas Atkinson, Caroline Brundle, Liz Graham, Jessica Johansson, Kate Best, Andrew Clegg, Anne Forster, Iain Anderson, Claire Walker, Sara Humphrey, Alison Iliff, Marilyn Foster.
6. Understanding the digital experience of older people: An analysis of qualitative interviews with INCLUDE study participants: Thomas Atkinson, Caroline Brundle, Liz Graham, Jessica Johansson, Kate Best, Andrew Clegg, Anne Forster, Iain Anderson, Claire Walker, Sara Humphrey, Alison Iliff, Marilyn Foster.
7. Unpaid end-of-life carers and financial trajectories: Evidence from understanding society survey: Edward Webb, Arthur Juet.
8. Designing smart textiles for the detection of loneliness in older individuals: Jingqi Liu, John Ratcliffb, Freya Probstb, Jessica Reesc, Erika Moltenie, Faith Matchamd, Sebastien Ourseline, Michela Antonellie, Anthea Tinkerc, Wei Liub, Yu Shia.
9. Screen-printed sensing system for knee health monitoring: Nikitia Mexia, Boyue Chen, Yu Shi.
10. Drawing Age: A brief account of an artist working with older people to visualise their lives and offer wellbeing activities: Garry Barker.
11. You don't get old from dancing; you get old when you stop - understanding older women’s participation in electronic dance music culture: Alice O’Grady, Alinka Greasley.
12. A model of ageing well across different cultures: Santi Sulandari, Judith Johnson, Rachel Coats.
13. Ageing well in Leeds: Helen Laird.
14. Home-based extended rehabilitation for older people with frailty (HERO): A multicentre randomised controlled trial with health economic analysis and process evaluation: Matthew Prescott, Michelle Collinson, Abi Hall, Vicki Goodwin, Ellen Thompson, Chris Bojke, David Clarke, Florence Day, Anne Forster, Claire Hulme, Julie Peacock, Friederike Ziegler, Amanda Farrin, Andrew Clegg.

Rowan Bailey: "The concept of creative health involves approaches and activities that have a positive impact on health and wellbeing. These can range from visual and performing arts through to gardening. It can also cover innovative ways to approach health and care services, to try to promote improved health and potentially ease pressure on the NHS. In December 2023, Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire and the West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership Board announced a ‘creative health system’ for the region to drive forward creative initiatives designed to make people feel happier and healthier.

In this talk I will discuss the kinds of health inequalities facing older people in the region of West Yorkshire, including the barriers to accessing creative health provision, such as transport, social isolation, mobility, housing, etc.

I will present a range of creative health case studies that are focused on creative ageing, including: Leeds Arts Health and Wellbeing Network, Mondays at the Museum (Kirklees), Curious Motion (Calderdale), Sikh Elders Service (Leeds), LGBTQ+ elders and art and dementia projects in care home settings. These projects provide new insights into lived experiences of age and ageing in creative contexts.

I will also draw upon the aims and ambitions of the newly formed Creative Health Hub at the University of Huddersfield’s national health innovation campus to reflect on how we might work with a consortium of external partners to generate projects that can improve access to and delivery of creative health provision for older people."

Garry Barker: “A report on practice-based drawing research and research undertaken as part of a community group that has been looking at how to manage the ageing process. A reflection on an art practice that revolves around making and drawing led conversations with older people, whereby conversations held are translated into images using various making and drawing processes.

As an individual, the artist/researcher is getting older and, as this very natural process becomes more noticeable (more aches and pains, a growing awareness of mortality and, of course, more conversations with people of a similar age) his drawings, artwork, and community engagements have reflected these things.

In particular, recent work has begun to embody issues that have emerged from research into ageing and memory, both as practice-based drawing research and as research undertaken as part of a community group that has been looking at how to manage the ageing process. The process of ageing is rarely the subject of a fine art practice and this body of conversations, drawings and ceramics begins to establish the groundwork for further investigation into the area.”

Emily Bradfield: "The session provides insights into the possibilities of participatory practice through a focus on: 

• thinking differently about how we engage with and in museum spaces from a multisensory perspective, through walking interviews and a focus group with adults affected by non-visible disabilities;
• reimagining a participatory programme through evaluative reflection with older adults living with chronic pain, musculoskeletal conditions and post-stroke.

At the Fitzwilliam Museum (University of Cambridge), we are creating infrastructure for people-centered research, exploring the potential of the university museum as a place for creative experimentation. Three practitioner researcher posts drive this activity through integrating research and practice, blending the traditional “postdoc” with delivery of museum work. These roles focus on early years; wellbeing (older adults); and participation; with a new post focusing on wellbeing (young adults) from August 2024. 

Supported by the Museum’s Research and Impact strategy, which aims to deliver research inspired by our diverse collections and audiences, while actively involving and benefiting those audiences, our projects are underpinning a transformational change in how our research connects with our communities. This work includes delivering a co-curated exhibition with a group of local residents, exploration of multisensory experiences of the Museum with people affected by non-visible disabilities and understanding a family friendly welcome by working alongside parents with babies and young children. 

In this presentation, Dr Emily Bradfield will share our approach to collaborative work, through the lens of healthy ageing - actively engaging (older) adults in reflective practice to develop a new model of health & wellbeing programming in the Museum; and conducting walking interviews with adults affected by non-visible disabilities to explore multisensory experiences of being in the Museum. This work is changing (older) adults' perceptions of museums and reflective practice and empowering them to make positive changes in their everyday lives."

Alice O’Grady: "Although clubbing has traditionally been understood as an expression of youth culture, this paradigm has shifted. A growing number of older people attend electronic dance music (EDM) events and continue participating well beyond the category of ‘youth’. Their active involvement makes a positive contribution to the culture, community and sustainability of the industry and yet largely goes ignored. Little is known about the experiences of older clubbers, their motivations for attending and the benefits they derive from it. Even less is known about the experiences of older female clubbers and how age and gender intersect in this context.

In 2021, a study was undertaken that investigated older women’s motivations for attending EDM events, the benefits they gain from participation, and some of the barriers they face. Results showed that EDM participation plays a central role in women’s mental and physical health and provides them with social connectedness, an outlet for self-expression and a release from pressures of daily life. Despite these positive benefits, participation in the scene is not without challenges as these women, whose age puts them outside the normative category of ‘clubber’, report adopting strategies to sustain their involvement, having to navigate other people’s views on their presence in the club space as well as grappling with their own internalised prejudices about age.

This presentation gives an overview of the results of the survey and considers the ways in which women manage their continued participation in relation to their ageing bodies, highlighting the role that EDM can play in healthy ageing."

Santi Sulandari: “Populations internationally are ageing, escalating health and social care expenditures. Due to these projected ageing-related pressures on health systems, there has been a growing interest in promoting and maintaining ageing well. However, existing studies have predominantly originated from Western countries, and only a small amount of research has been carried out in Eastern countries.

Experiences related to what it means to ‘age well’ may also vary across the lifespan and between different age groups Therefore, there is a need to explore studies related to ageing well across different cultures and ages.

We are currently conducting research including:

1. a qualitative investigation into what it means to ‘age well’ and to explore similarities and differences between two cultures (Javanese and British);
2. a systematic review and meta-analysis of the relationships between depression, anxiety, physical capability, social support, loneliness and life satisfaction in older people
3. an examination of the factors that contribute to ageing well across different age groups using a cross-sectional questionnaire design
4. an examination of  the factors that contribute to ageing well across different cultures, also using a cross-sectional questionnaire design.

I will present data from the first two of these studies, to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the area of ageing well which should help to develop a more culturally appropriate intervention to help older people age well in the future.”

Ali Mair: "A common memory complaint, both in healthy older adults and those with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), is difficulty remembering recent experiences in rich detail, as one might have been able to do when younger. Previous psychological research suggests that the cause of this difficulty is not an inability to commit the information to memory in the first place, but rather a problem with memory consolidation (strengthening of the memory over time) and/or retrieval (accessing the stored memory at a later date). 

In this study we aimed to establish, objectively, whether wearable cameras can be used to successfully support memory consolidation. Older adults with and without MCI were each taken on three different guided tours of local attractions. The day after each tour their memory was tested, and following this they reviewed material from the tour. For each tour, the reviewed material was one of (a) photographs or (b) video clips, captured by a GoPro camera they had worn during the tour, or (c) text-only bullet points listing the topics that the tour covered. On the following three days, and again one week later, this entire process was repeated, beginning with the memory test and followed by a review of the same material. This provided a detailed measure of how each participant's memory changed over the days following the tour. 

We are still processing the results, but already there is evidence of striking consolidation effects in both healthy older adults and those with MCI. Consolidation effects are observable for every type of reviewed material, but largest for photographs compared with video clips or text. In all three conditions, the effect of consolidation is also apparent in memory for material that was never reviewed. I will discuss the potential impact of these findings on the development of memory aids for older adults."

Caroline Brundle: "Background: Digital exclusion is a super social determinant of health as it can affect many areas of life that influence health and wellbeing (eg making appointments, banking, contacting family). Older people, for whom the inability to engage in these activities can have the most negative impact (e.g. loneliness, poor housing, poor health), are the group most often digitally excluded. Support and training is available to increase digital inclusion, but usually offered when people come into contact with services, rather than systematically. Thus, some older people who might benefit from support are not offered it, and we don’t know what support is best for them. 

Aims: The INCLUDE study will i) develop a robust, replicable method for identifying digitally excluded older adults, and ii) refine and test an intervention(s) to meet their needs. Here we report the first aim. 

Methods: A bespoke survey included questions about internet use and potential predictors of exclusion derived from the literature. Survey mailouts were generated by two GP practices using patient registers and sent (using DocMail) to those aged 65+. Practices linked individual survey IDs to frailty (eFI) scores, enabling the inclusion of frailty as a predictor variable. Postal methods were augmented by telephone follow-up and face-to-face community engagement.

Estimates indicated that sending 6,000 surveys was necessary to achieve the required sample size (N≥900). 

Findings: 5982 surveys were posted; 2916 (49%) returned. Over 350 were completed by telephone and community engagement. Early findings identify age, ethnicity, living status, socioeconomic deprivation and frailty as predictors of digital exclusion. We will present findings on digital exclusion prevalence and predictors, and discuss our experience of excellent response rates.

Impact: A predictive model, developed using survey data, will be implementable in primary care electronic health records, allowing identification of digitally excluded older adults to enable the targeting of support."

Debora Price: “There has been little focus on older people within studies of household money. The extent to which this matters depends on how far the wider financial, political and policy environment individualises late life financial decision making.  In the UK, the individualisation of these financial risks is evident across policy domains.

Older people are now expected to be actuarial subjects and competent money managers through to late old age.  Within this context, how money relations within ageing households are affected by financial capability, declining cognition and formal capacity for financial decision making are matters largely unexplored in academic literature or research.

In this presentation I bring together understandings from across disciplines to highlight the growing complexities of everyday lives for older people and later life financial welfare. I argue that these are matters of profound personal importance requiring attention from researchers and policy actors.”

Helen Laird: “The Director of Public Health Annual Report 2023 on Ageing Well in Leeds shines a light on the experiences of people in later life and how healthy places and communities create the conditions for better health.

In producing the report we heard the voices of over 900 people in later life, 50 professionals working with this age group and analysed a raft of data to identify key needs and actions required to improve number of years spent in better health. It also identifies that there is a lot we are already doing and much more we can do across a broad range of sectors and determinants of health.”

To hear the experiences of some of the 900 people surveyed, read the reports and watch the film:

• Full report: Ageing Well: Our Lives in Leeds (PDF)
• Executive Summary (PDF)
• Watch the film Our Lives in Leeds 
   

Matthew Prescott: "Following acute hospitalisation, many older people with frailty require a period of rehabilitation in intermediate care (IC). This is usually time limited to 2-6 weeks, and while early readmission is reduced, the benefits attenuate with time, and national IC audit data suggest service users do not perceive their recovery to be complete on discharge. Extended rehabilitation presents an opportunity to augment the rehabilitative gains currently observed through hospital and IC-based rehabilitation.

The HERO trial is an NIHR-funded individually randomised controlled trial to evaluate the benefits of extended rehabilitation for older people with frailty after discharge from hospital or IC following an acute illness or injury.

The Home-based Older People’s Exercise (HOPE) programme is a 24-week home-based exercise programme and is the main intervention being evaluated as extended rehabilitation in the HERO trial. The HOPE programme has been co-designed with and for older adults with frailty. Delivered in a ‘light touch’ efficient manner by physiotherapy teams, the programme aims to improve functional strength and balance essential for everyday mobility tasks.

We will present headline results from the main trial, the process evaluation, and health economic analysis. The trial recruited to target (742 participants) and completed 12 month follow-up, with the physical component summary of the sort-form 36-item health questionnaire (SF36) as primary outcome. The trial results have potential for considerable impact to health and social care service delivery for frail older adults following hospitalisation."

David Alldred:

“Medicines can be life-saving and improve quality-of-life for older people. However, medicines can also cause harm, particularly when older people are living with frailty and are prescribed multiple medicines for several conditions. NHS medication reviews are commissioned to ensure patients are prescribed appropriate medicines, and can get the best out of them.

We co-designed an ideal medication review process along with patient-centred resources for older people living at home to: prepare people for medication reviews; to ensure that if medicines are stopped, this is safely communicated to older people. These resources have been widely implemented in primary care. In this current project, we aim to adapt our medication review process and resources for older people living in care homes.

We conducted 20 ‘think aloud’ interviews from four care homes including four care home residents, four family members, five care home staff and seven healthcare professionals to discuss medication reviews and our existing resources. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed and will be analysed using the ADAPT principles for adapting interventions to new contexts (Moore et al., 2021. https://www.bmj.com/content/374/bmj.n1679).  We will then undertake a series of co-design workshops with the above stakeholders to adapt our current resources, and where appropriate, co-develop new resources for this context.

To date, we have undertaken preliminary analysis of the healthcare professional interviews. Key considerations include: providing information with appropriate content and format for residents, staff and family members; how all stakeholders can/should be involved in medication reviews; overcoming system-wide barriers to ensure effective and safe medication reviews.

Preliminary findings from healthcare professional interviews indicate that whilst our existing resources are valuable, they require significant adaptation to the care home context. Analysis of further stakeholder interviews and subsequent co-design workshops will facilitate the creation of medication review resources to improve medicines safety.”