Despite COVID 19 and the restrictions, the EMMA team in Portugal was successful in organizing a conference to present the EMMA project and to highlight the relevance of Mobility for Active/Healthy Ageing.
The Mobility and Active/Healthy Ageing Conference which was held online on the 8th of September 2021 was an open and free event that counted on the active participation of 172 people from 7 countries.
Moderated by Suzanne Timmons, Professor of Geriatric Medicine at the University College Cork and coordinator of Emma team in Ireland, the conference brought together experts from, academia and industry.
The first presentation was given by the coordinator of the Emma Project, Professor Raija Kuisma, from Karelia University of Applied Sciences. In this intervention, we had the opportunity to get to know the design, objectives, challenges and expected results of the EMMA project, which intends to develop an interdisciplinary European Master on Active Ageing and Age-Friendly Society. Professor Kuisma emphasized the importance of training professionals on the phenomenon of ageing not only in the areas of geriatrics and gerontology but also in other areas. Ageing is changing the structure of our society, and a holistic approach is crucial to dealing with its impacts in different areas of intervention.
In the second presentation, Professor Maddalena Illario from Federico II University of Naples gave us an overview of the Policy Framework on Healthy Ageing. She highlighted the necessity of a life-course, multistakeholder and interdisciplinary approach as a key aspect to address the health implications of population ageing. Professor Illario also underlined that education and training are pivotal to ensure effective exchange, uptake and scale-up of innovative good practices.
Finalizing the first strand, Chiara Maiorin, Education Manager of EIT Health InnoStars, talked about EIT Health’s support opportunities for higher education projects in healthy ageing in Europe. She gave various examples of successful education programs such as summer schools, Innovation days and degrees promoted by consortiums involving partners from business, research and education.
The second strand of the event was structured as a workshop focussing on the importance of Mobility for Active/Healthy Ageing. The introduction was made by Professor Fátima Baptista, from the University of Lisbon and coordinator of the EMMA team in Portugal. Professor Baptista highlighted the importance of mobility for successful ageing, as mobility is a critical factor for carrying out activities of daily living, a fundamental marker of health and a determinant of social interaction or isolation. In closing, a film was shown to reinforce the main ideas of this presentation. The workshop was further enriched by four presentations of top successful EU funded ICT projects focused on Active/Healthy Ageing:
Lorenzo Chiar, from the University of Bologna, presented the FARSEEING, a project focusing on ICT devices that had the aim to promote better prediction and prevention of falls of older adults.
Stephanie Jansen, from Roessingh Research and Development, presented PERSSILAA, a project which aimed to develop a service to screen for and prevent frailty.
John Barton, from Tyndall National Institute, presented the ProACT project aimed to develop and evaluate an ecosystem to integrate a wide variety of new and existing technologies to improve and advance home-based integrated care for older adults with multimorbidity, including associated co-morbidities.
Andy Bleaden, from ECHAlliance, presented the SILVER, a project that searched for new technologies to assist elderly people in their everyday lives. In summing up, these projects reinforced the importance of the use of ICT for developing solutions to measure, understand, monitor and promote mobility and healthy ageing in its many dimensions.
Once the presentations were completed, participants had the opportunity to ask questions and provide their reflections. It was fantastic to receive so many great questions for the Q&A. The Final Remarks were given by Anne Marie Brady, Professor of Nursing and Chronic Illness from the University of Dublin.
If you missed out, don’t worry! Below, you can find the links with the recording of each session.
| Conferences – Ageing and Higher Education | ||
| Speaker | Affiliation | Theme |
| Raija Kuisma | North Karelia University of Applied Sciences | The EMMA project |
| Maddalena Illario | Federico II University of Naples | Policy Framework on Healthy Ageing |
| Chiara Maiorino | EIT Health InnoStars | Higher Education in Healthy Ageing Europe |
| Workshop – Mobility and Active/Healthy Ageing | ||
| Speaker | Affiliation | Theme |
| Fátima Baptista | Faculty of Human Kinetics – University of Lisbon. | Mobility and Active/Healthy ageing |
| Supervising and Supporting Mobility – EU funded ICT projects for Active/Healthy Ageing | ||
| Lorenzo Chiari | University of Bologna | FARSEEING Project |
| Stephanie Jansen | Roessingh Research and Development | PERSSILAA Project |
| John Barton | Tyndall National Institute | ProACT Project |
| Andy Bleaden | ECHAlliance | SILVER Project |
Authors:
CIPER, Faculdade de Motricidade Humana, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
Fátima Baptista – PhD – Professor.
Filomena Carnide – PhD – Professor.
Graça Cardadeiro- PhD – Researcher
Vera Zymbal- PhD – Researcher