Exploring the sustainability of age-friendly initiatives in a Canadian province

Convivialité des municipalités canadiennes à l’égard des aînés : portrait et facteurs associés

Objectives

This study aimed to (1) document, globally and by domain, Canadian municipalities’ level of age-friendliness, and (2) identify municipality characteristics most associated with age-friendliness.

Methods

A cross-sectional survey was sent to all Canadian municipalities (N=3406) with an online survey of 56 items from 9 domains providing age-friendliness scores. These scores were then crossed with the following municipality characteristics: percentage of adults aged 65 and older, population density, material deprivation, social deprivation, degree of metropolitan influence, implementation step of an age-friendly municipality initiative and geographic area.

Results

Nine hundred twenty-one municipalities completed the survey. Overall, municipalities’ age-friendliness total score is good (58.4%). Four domains have high scores: Security (80.0%), Respect and social inclusion (65.0%), Outdoor spaces and building (62.2%), and Social participation (62.2%). Higher age-friendliness is associated with metropolitan municipalities, regions other than Prairies and Atlantic, higher residential density, greater proportion of older adults, greater social deprivation, lower material deprivation, and the last step of an age-friendly initiative.

Conclusion

This portrait of Canadian municipalities’ age-friendliness can be used to strengthen actions promoting active aging.

Aligning Policy, Place and Public Value: Planning Age Friendly Cities in Municipal Organizations

KEY POINTS

Age-friendly planning should not fall to local departments of senior services only.Planning coordination of age-friendly policy results in more diverse outcomes.Mapping is a tool helping policy makers visualize alternative opportunities.Maps give stakeholders the ability to track and monitor progress.This approach is easily replicable for cities implementing age-friendly programs.