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Health Enhancement for the Rural Elderly (H.E.R.E)
Table of Contents
The Health Enhancement for Rural Elderly (HERE) is a one year project funded by the USDA which is designed to enhance the health and well-being of rural elderly. The project consists of the following three components and corresponding objectives:
- (a) Health Literacy - to increase the ability to obtain, process, understand and use basic health information and services;
- (b) My Health Companion - to increase personal responsibility for overall health, improve self-care management skills and enhance health-related decision-making; and,
- (c) Powerful Tools for Caregivers - to engage and empower family members, friends, and other community members with the knowledge and skills, for appropriate care/support services.
Montana is aging at a faster rate than most states in the nation and currently ranks first in having the largest share of Medicare beneficiaries living in rural areas (77 %). This compares to a nationwide average of only 24% of Medicare beneficiaries living in rural areas. According to the U.S. Census projections, by the year 2025, Montana will rank in the top five states for overall percentage of elderly state-wide, with over 25% of the population expected to be 65-years-old or older.
Care for Montana's elderly is complicated by the states rural agricultural demographics, which are characterized by long travel distances, poor secondary roads, long winters and inclement weather, and limited community-based services. Fortunately, the Montana Legislature created the Older Montanan’s Trust Fund in 2007 to provide a new stream of funding to help meet the needs for additional long-term care resources of the expanding elderly population.
The HERE Project will test the aforementioned three well-established evidence-based best practice programs in several small rural eastern Montana communities (less than 2,000 population) that have a disproportionately high percentage of elderly (15-30%). The local Senior Center in each pilot community serves as the central facility where program activities are being implemented. It is envisioned that the outcomes of this project will be to enhance the health and well-being of rural elderly allowing them to remain in their own homes as long as possible.
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