Claire Cruse
The Aging 2.0 Network hosted a presentation on The Future of Aging in Denver last month. Guest speaker Claire Cruse is a gerontologist and health policy manager with the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions in Denver. Her primary research interests are in Medicare, Medicare Advantage, payment reform, post acute care, and the individual health insurance market.
Cruse and the Deloitte team recently conducted a research survey with older adults to review their health conditions and lifestyles to determine their future of aging through 2040.
Compared to the early 1900s, health care today is definitely much better at extending the life span after the diagnosis of a disease. In 1900, the average life expectancy of Americans was 47 years. Today, the average life span is over 70 years.
More people living longer with disease has led to many unforeseen changes at the societal level. Consumers lifestyles and access to health care data will be central to extending life span by 2040. The trend is to focus on treating patients in their homes, providing wellness programs before health problems begin, using new technologies in preventing or treating major diseases, and on mental health to avoid depression, suicide, and other anxiety problems.
Patients will be monitored and treated in this digital age using electronic devices that alert health care professionals. Professional and family caregivers will be part of this method in supporting their patients. However, caregivers will still need help to get their patients mobile to a medical facility using UBER or disability transportation services.
Even Amazon and Google are entering the healthcare industry and providing new technologies in supporting aging Americans. It’s an exciting time for aging Americans with the vast amount of health care changes happening now and more to come in making their lives much better than yesterday and living longer!