Ep. 004: Opening Doors to Aging Services | with Gwen Fitzgerald
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Episode 4 features the second part of Amanda's conversation with Gwen Fitzgerald, Director of Public Messaging at LeadingAge (national). They explore how LeadingAge’s Opening Doors to Aging Services initiative is reshaping perceptions about aging services through research and storytelling.
Discover the profound impact on public trust, government support, and personal insights into navigating aging with dignity and understanding. This episode offers a compelling look at why redefining our approach to aging and aging services is more important than ever. Tune in and join the movement to uplift aging today!
This episode elevates the conversation with takeaways like:
The initiative focuses on the one-third of people in the middle who are open to changing their perception of the field of aging services.
There is strong public support for a bigger investment in aging services.
Storytelling is important in changing perceptions and creating genuine connections.
Families often struggle to navigate the continuum of aging services and need more information and options.
Aging services providers communicate basic information about their services and share human stories to benefit families and recruitment efforts.
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Episode breakdown:
00:00 | Intro
00:30 | Recap of Opening Doors to Aging Services
01:23 | Impact of Market Research
03:44 | Personal Reflections and Inclusive Language
06:01 | Public Perception and Government Support
07:53 | Storytelling and Positive Perceptions
10:01 | Personal Impact and Family Experience
13:42 | Educating the Public on Aging Services
16:22 | Conclusion and Call to Action
19:58 | Outro
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Special thanks to Gwen Fitzgerald & LeadingAge!
This episode is made possible by LeadingAge Texas' Partners: Functional Pathways, LeadingAge Texas Health Plan, Inc., and Ziegler; along with LeadingAge Texas' Diamond Sponsors: Value First and Communities of Faith, RRG.
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Join the movement as we continue to elevate the conversation on aging by visiting upliftaging.org and following us on our socials @upliftaging.
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The Uplift Aging Podcast is a production of LeadingAge Texas.
Transcript - Ep. 004 (auto-generated)
Intro (00:04.046)
This is Uplift Aging, the podcast that's more than a podcast. This is a challenge to embrace growing older, confront negative stereotypes, and better understand what may come with aging. I'm your host, Amanda Wiedenfeld. Together, let's uplift aging.
Amanda (00:27.726)
In this episode, we'll explore the Leading Age initiative, Opening Doors to Aging Services. We first learned about the initiative and met Gwen Fitzgerald with Leading Age in episode three. So I encourage you to give that a listen. But for just a quick refresher, Leading Age launched Opening Doors to Aging Services to help older adults and their families better understand how aging services deliver the care and support that many of us will need to lead fulfilling lives as we age.
The initiative is focused on resetting the narrative and proactively telling the story of aging services. It includes a communications strategy and a public service campaign, and it is all grounded in robust original research. And that research is where we'll jump right back into my conversation with Gwen Fitzgerald, Director of Public Messaging at LeadingAge.
Gwen (01:23.726)
LeadingAge did have the opportunity to do pretty extensive market research, basically by a two to one margin. So about 20 % to let's say 45%, people trust us. And so we asked you, what is your trust level and what is your perception of our field? And on that question also by two to one, they have a positive perception of us by approximately 25 % to 48%. So you'll notice a couple things: Those high numbers never eclipsed 50. We never broke 50 % on trust or public perception. So this is a sector that strives for excellence. So we're not satisfied with that. But our negatives are low. And then for those of you doing the math, that leaves 30 % in the middle, who on both a question of trust and perception, they said, I don't know. Now on any given day, I know everything I know. I always have an opinion. So how at the end, again, think of that tsunami of negativity that was unfairly directed at us, but people's perceptions held. They didn't erode to that negativity, which I find remarkable. And so we said, there's our opportunity. Let's not worry about this small number of people who are in a negative place, but let's focus on that kind of in the middle, that one third in the middle, who we believe we can change.
And the reason we believe that is that in the course of our online survey, we asked the question twice. We asked the trust and perceptions question at the beginning, and then through the survey, they learned more just by answering questions. They started to understand. We put some ideas out there, and we asked the question at the end of the survey, and we were able to move people even more favorably just by taking an online survey.
So at openingdoors .org are the strategies, the research, the messages, and then various lengths of documents. You can dig into a lot of in -depth research and language and guidance, or you can find things like our Getting Started checklist, our Do's and Don'ts one -pager. Whatever level, whatever depth of the pool you want to dive into, we've got that for you to start learning.
Amanda (03:44.686)
That's great. And yeah, like I shared with you before we hit record that I had known about opening doors just by way of it being communicated with the leading age state affiliates way back when it seems, but I hadn't had an opportunity to dive into it until I was researching for this episode. And like I told you, I was super impressed with the depth of information and the knowledge that I gained. I mentioned in the episode before that I do not think of myself as an expert on aging by any stretch, I've just been around so many people in this field for over a decade. So you just kind of pick up on things here and there, right? But I know that I'm not someone coming fresh into this. So the amount of understanding that I took away from spending some time with this information and research was super helpful to me as a person who is aging like everyone else and as someone working within this field.
I was also just happy to see so much of what we collectively as leading -age staff and state affiliates and members want to be shared being shared. I very much admire how y 'all were able to put that all together based on the research and make this initiative available to LeadingAge members. It is wonderful. And listeners, I highly recommend visiting the website. I will link it in the show notes as there is quite a bit of information, the research available to the public and anyone in the field regardless of membership.
Gwen
Yeah, and I do encourage people to look at it. I mean, there are simple things that we can all start doing. The word that we probably need to focus on the most, so we serve older adults. You know, leading age is really recommending that particular language, moving away from seniors or old folks.
The other word that just even before I came here probably grated on my nerves, facility. You know, a lot of people outside of our field call beautiful communities, facilities. And these are residences. People live there. They celebrate their holidays and their treasured moments there. And when we think of other places that are facilities, they're nothing like what our communities are like. So even those words just start to signify things in the listener's mind. And so starting to use opening doors can be that simple. Pick one of those words and start changing them.
Amanda (06:01.006)
Was there anything that you found while you were working on this initiative that surprised you?
Gwen
We were analyzing our research in the summer of 2021. And at that time, the Biden administration was talking a lot about the care economy. He was crafting a lot of the pandemic recovery bills and thinking about where to try to infuse resources into the economy to get us out of the pandemic. And we were so encouraged to hear that.
And we picked up glimmers in the first batch of research that the public believes that aging services and the ability to access aging services are essential. And then the government must make an investment in it. It's a government responsibility. And the government has failed older adults. And they need to make a bigger investment. And they needed to make it now. And that was in the context of the care economy and the public even believes that there is a right to these essential services. What surprised me a little bit about that was the strength of those beliefs. And if you go to the openingdoors .org research, we have a whole easy to read PowerPoint on these questions and polling numbers that came in. But it was across political party. It was across geography. It was Republicans, Democrats, Independents, no matter where you lived, no matter your age, these numbers were off the charts. Like every question we asked was in the 70s and 80s and among all those different groups. So again, just when you think there's a lot of stuff going on in the world and we can't agree on a blue sky being pretty, we actually have tremendous support across the political spectrum for a bigger investment in services that help older adults.
So that was pretty surprising and we pushed that out pretty hard and we continue to push those numbers out. That is surprising and uplifting to catch coin of phrase. Very uplifting. But to have it at that percentage is very meaningful.
The other thing that I wanted to say that was kind of surprising or again, a positive finding, and it's partly why we named the initiative Opening Doors and we're encouraging people to tell their stories. Earlier in the podcast, I noted that people have pretty good positive perceptions of the sector, but you know who has the most positive perceptions of the sector? People who have had experience with it. So experience drives confidence. People who had had experience using some form of aging services, either directly or with a loved one, their positive perceptions were about 10 points higher than the general public. And they were very likely, they were 70 % of the people with experience would refer a friend or, you know, refer someone to aging services. That's how positive their experience had been. So that's why we're really on a push to have us define our sector and us tell our own stories about what's going on in our organization.
When I started working in the communications field, it was really just media outreach. Those were the only people with microphones, right? When I started working, there wasn't the internet, okay? I'm a baby boomer, so just imagine that. So communication was very, very different. We relied on the media. So I love the media, but you give up something in that translation, right? By definition, it's just hard to sell a positive story sometimes, right? Because if it bleeds, it leads and whatever, all that stuff. But we have a million positive stories to tell. And so we encourage our members to get those stories out using the guidance within opening doors, because we know there are strategies in there that help people receive the information really well. Again, I think of our members . . . They're just performing miracles every day. You know, like they got through COVID with trash bags. They somehow staffed their organizations when it was dangerous to come to work. There is some level of recovery within our organizations still going on, but the stories that every single one of leading age members can tell are beautiful, whether it's from residents of our organizations or the people who work there. So whether they're snippets on social media or you can work into general media or pitch yourself to a great podcast. We just want to tell our own stories now.
Amanda
Yes. Storytelling is so important. And like you were getting at, we just have so many other means now to tell our stories and anyone can do it, right? It is great to see so many of our members leaning into that now. And the impact of being seen and heard from their own vantage point is so rich.
Gwen
Yeah, both telling and receiving. I mean, the use of electronic devices and social media among older adults is, you know, pick your platform, but is increasing. So we have the microphone ourselves now. So it's great to see so many members embracing that and figuring out ways to get their stories out.
Amanda (11:18.51)
And getting a little personal now, has any of your work with the initiative impacted or changed your view on aging itself or on ageism or the aging services field?
Gwen
So I will share that my mom is a twin, Betty Jane and Barbara Jean. By the time you hear this, they'll be 86. And there are five smart adult children who are trying to support two women. And let me tell you something, it is hard because families don't live together anymore. So we are from Miami to Philadelphia, these five people. So at one point we thought it would be a good idea that my aunt moved in, spent a lot of time with my mom, but that meant the person from Miami was moving to Philadelphia. So that was good for part of the year. And there was one of the adult children was nearby. And then my sister and I, we're going up there and heavens thank you for remote work and leading age, for respecting family needs. So my sister and I would go up and spend a week and work remotely because they just need a little bit of support. My aunt has been diagnosed with Alzheimer's and so there are changes there and so she needed a little more support than my mom did. And at work, I'm every day just reading about the workforce crisis and the numbers just give me a stomachache every time I… see how many people left the workforce in the pandemic and how hard it is for our members to find the professionals that we need. And then we were living it. I mean, my cousin just wanted to get a home health aid to help my aunt get up and get going in the morning and the ADLs. Now I understand what that is. You know, just brush your teeth and put on different clothes and go downstairs. Could not get a home health aid. People would say they would send someone and not show up. I mean, they would confirm at eight in the morning and not show up. They would come once and we'd say, this is the person, not show up. So I think my family's living now the stress on our sector. I think my siblings and I want to get different support from my mom because as she needs a little bit more help, I'm seeing the challenges of being the daughter and the caregiver because I heard through a neighbor that I'm bossy.
Amanda
That's always a good word choice, right? We're talking about language.
Gwen
Right. Perfect word choice for me to hear on the grapevine. But when you're working and you come downstairs and you have 30 minutes for lunch and you want your mom to eat something healthy, you get bossy. I will continue to encourage people to come to this field. It's meaningful. You have never been needed more.
It's just, I'm living it every day and I'm correcting language as we were just talking about, trying to explain, you know, what services we'll need. So there has been that. It has also been very helpful in the framing because one of the opening door strategies is that aging is about all of us. It's not about those people over there. It's about all of us and it's about the changes that all of us are going through. So we're
I'm using a lot of the strategies and language within my own family. We're having the hearing aid debate, right? I've, so many families are having it. And I sit there and I point to these huge glasses that are on my face. I'm like, mom, your first born is 61 years old. Look, my vision is changing. It's age appropriate. Your hearing is age appropriate. Like I'm trying to use the strategies I've learned at work in very personal conversations right now.
Amanda
It's about genuine connection, right? Like when you shared your lived experience with your mom and how you wear glasses and she wears hearing aids. I mean, that's beautiful. The professionals who work in our member organizations face that kind of thing daily, right? Shifting gears to connect meaningfully in a short time. It's tough. I mean, needing to do that, like you said, in a 30 -minute span of time when you have to get back to work, this is hard for anyone.
Gwen
You know - what percentage of the country is living this experience right now? We’re the sandwich generation. Fortunately, I only have one side of the sandwich. My stepchildren are young adults and they're launching. So we're very, very fortunate in that. And for better or worse, between my husband and me, we have one older adult to support, really, and guide. So it is what it is. And it's enough to try to do that. So it's just reinforcing the vital role that people who work in any part, I repeat, any part of the aging services sector, the role is indispensable.
Amanda (16:22.094)
How would things have been different for you and your family if you had not yet worked on opening doors? And then how has your work with opening doors and with leading age equipped you to help your family try to figure out and understand the services that your mom and your aunt may need moving forward?
Gwen
One of the things that the opening doors research told us is that the general public is not really very familiar with the continuum of aging services. Ask them what they think it is. We built a word cloud, actually. And guess what we saw? Nursing, homes, assisted living, and then a lot of other things, ideas. I was probably like the general public before I started working here.
And it's interesting because needing to do more for my mom, nearly, nearly perfectly aligned with starting to work here, I can't explain it. But had I not started working here, I wouldn't have known where to go. I wouldn't have known what we were dealing with. I wouldn't have known the options. I certainly would not have known that there were home health aides who could come in and give you four hours of help a day. I didn't understand what adult day programs were, even though sometimes you drive by them. I didn't understand there'd be a little bit of healthcare there. I didn't understand the importance of respite for the family caregiver, even though I do it in bursts now, like a week at a time, or as we're talking now, it's been, we've had a lot of togetherness, it's been about six weeks, I'm ready for some respite. I was kind of like the average person who the research confirmed doesn't understand the continuum.
And that's a hint to LeadingAge members, whether recruiting or talking to your consumers. We really need to state the obvious and just say what the services are. And there isn't one logical place to go, I don't think. Area Agencies on Aging, but again, bless them, but I don't know that people are quite familiar with the organizations. So again, our members every day are busy moving mountains and performing miracles still three years after COVID. So we're not thinking about telling the basic bio story, what we are and what we do, but we're still at that point. And it's exceptionally important now giving the demographic changes that we knew were coming because it's just math when were people born and how many it's just simple math. It's manifesting now. And we have this amazing transformation that people are living longer thanks to medical science and we're living longer, healthier lives. So all of that's manifesting. So it's never been more important for aging services providers to get out what might seem like basic information, what we do, what the services are and how they connect to each other, to get that information out. And then to couple that information with the beautiful human stories that are happening every minute within your organization. That will be beneficial to families and it will be beneficial to your recruiting efforts.
Amanda
A huge thank you to Gwen Fitzgerald and LeadingAge (national). And a final challenge for today, follow a social media account of an aging services organization in your area. Consume the content that they are sharing, the stories they are telling, and maybe even visit that community.
Outro
Thanks for tuning in to Uplift Aging, a production of Leading Age Texas. Check out this episode's show notes for more about Leading Age Texas, today's guest, and the Uplift Aging movement. Until next time, join us on socials at Uplift Aging as we continue to elevate the conversation on aging.