NYSOFA Study Finds Significant Increases in Social Connectedness...

A new study released by the New York State Office for the Aging (NYSOFA) finds significant reductions in self-reported social isolation for individuals who participate in New York State-funded Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORCs).

NORCs are one of many programs administered by NYSOFA to help individuals age in place, with a focus on addressing social isolation - a risk factor for developing health and mental health challenges.

NYSOFA Director Greg Olsen said, "The NORC program is a New York State innovation designed to serve the needs of communities naturally as its residents age. Like many NYSOFA-administered programs, core features includes case management, information and outreach, participant-driven social programming, and many other services that keep people healthy and engaged. Uniquely, NORCs also provide health care management via a health care professional on-site at the NORC. This report, from NORC residents themselves, reveals that community-based interventions are having a meaningful impact in addressing social isolation, which is a prominent area of concern and focus for older adults."

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that loneliness costs the U.S. economy $406 billion a year, in addition to the estimated $6.7 billion a year in Medicare costs for socially isolated older adults. Lacking connection can also increase the risk for premature death to levels comparable to smoking daily.

About the Study

The newly released NORC Program: Impact on Social Isolation study was conducted among 2,262 older adults aged 60 or above, randomly selected, who live in the 43 state-funded NORCs. Loneliness was measured utilizing the "UCLA 3-item Loneliness Scale."

Individuals were asked how often they felt a lack of companionship, how often they felt left out, and how often they felt isolated from others. For each question, NORC participants reported significant improvements in social connection after joining the NORC and having access to NORC services. The study found a:

• 77% increase in the number of participants who reported "Hardly Ever" feeling a "lack of companionship" after joining the NORC - from 997 participants (44%) to 1,768 participants (78%).
  
• 67% increase in the number of participants who reported "Hardly Ever" feeling "left out" after joining the NORC - from 1,114 participants (49%) to 1,867 participants (83%).
  
• 63% increase in the number of participants who reported "Hardly Ever" feeling "isolated from others" after joining the NORC - from 1,143 participants (51%) to 1,867 participants (83%).

Read the report here for more detailed findings.

About New York's NORC Program

NORCs are physical buildings, communities, or neighborhoods with a growing population of older adults in which the dwellings were not purposefully intended for older adults when they were originally designed and/or built. A NORC can develop in a few ways. It can occur as residents move into a building, group of buildings, or residential area and age in place over time. Additionally, younger residents might move out and/or older residents might move in. The age demographics evolve "naturally."

A NORC becomes a program with the involvement of a lead agency (often a non-profit social services agency) which brings together a range of on-site health and support services that respond to the unique needs of residents as they age. Forty-three NORC programs are funded at the state level through NYSOFA, fulfilling specific NYSOFA program requirements. NORC programs can also be funded and organized at the local level, through the organizing efforts of community members, non-profits, municipal governments, and other stakeholders.

The New York State NORC Program through NYSOFA is a proven cost-saver, helping prevent nursing-home placement, spend-down to Medicaid, ER/ED use, and other more expensive services. On average, this model costs approximately $500 per participant per year and can prevent nursing-home placement or other higher-cost service use at a time when the average cost of a nursing-home bed is $159,000 per year.

NORC Documentary

Earlier this year, NYSOFA released a documentary film, Aging in Community: A New York First Model, which offers an in-depth look at the NORC program. The documentary showcases three NORCs (one rural, one suburban, and one urban) in Western New York at Findley Lake, Queens, and East Harlem. It also features the powerful voices of residents in those communities who are true NORC success stories. Watch the film on NYSOFA's YouTube channel here. It is also available on NYSOFA's NORC webpage at https://aging.ny.gov/norc.