a purposeful future - report

7/28/2019 A Purposeful Future - Report

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A Purposeful FutureBuilding micro industries into retirement villages.

28 February 2013Lara Calder, Rob Caslick, Geoff Flower, Jenny Martin


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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Up to 45% of people in aged care homes have depressionand it is a common

misconception that depression is a normal part of ageing.

Our aim is to significantly reduce the risk of depression in older people bycreating meaningful activities that contribute towards a common goal. Wepropose to immediately address the current expectations of life afterretirement by introducing the concept of a purposeful future.

Our goal is to create a micro industry within the village where people at alllevels of faculty and capability can participate and contribute towards acommon goal. We would like people to celebrate the knowledge and wisdomthey have gained throughout their life and participate in whatever form they

feel comfortable with. We want people to contribute and continue to learnnew skills and grow their minds in the generation and growth of this newindustry.

A study by Gary T. Reker et all2suggests Life Purpose and Goal Seeking,were found to predict psychological and physical well-being in the elderly.When we are engaged in purposeful activities we believe we haveresponsibilities and choices. Our mind is more often active and alive whenthere are still challenges to look forward to and people or situations thatdepend on us, which makes us feel valued.

We encourage the residents of the village to remain in the village as they ageand to continue to feel part of the community they have created. The designof the village will support home based care. As the resident ages andbecomes frail the activities assigned will reflect their cognitive, physical, andemotional abilities and inabilities.

The community will play a big part in the success of our new model. We aimto invite people from the local community to engage in our new industry andbring with them their skills and energy. We too will take our produce and newskills into the community and play a larger part in local markets andcommunity gatherings

Our goal is to provide an environment that promotes and celebrates life. Anenvironment that keeps minds active and helps fend off illnesses through apositive purpose to living and the feeling of a purposeful future.


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Table of Contents

1. The Business Model .................................................................................. 4

2. Community Engagement ........................................................................... 5

3. CONCEPTUAL Business Plan .................................................................. 6

4. Working Example: A Winery ...................................................................... 7

4.1 Introduction ......................................................................................... 7

4.2 The Business. ..................................................................................... 7

4.3 The Retirement Village ....................................................................... 9

4.4 Business Integration ........................................................................... 9

4.5 Projected Personnel Requirements .................................................. 10

4.6 Community Engagement .................................................................. 11

4.7 Conclusion ........................................................................................ 12

5. Research Component ............................................................................. 13

5.1 Research Project Description ........................................................ 13

5.2 Project timelines: April 2013-February 2014 .................................. 13

5.3 Research Project Team Members ................................................. 14

6. Conclusion .............................................................................................. 16

ANNEX Research ProposalREFERENCES


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1. THE BUSINESS MODEL

The model is simple. Two businesses operating at a common location, eachbusiness will be run as a separate entity. A successful retirement village

business model will be merged with a successful micro industry businessmodel. Each with their own management team and while staff will be involvedin both businesses in a seamless way to residents and the community, theywill have clear reporting and accountability to their employing entity. they willbe employed under their primary skill set.

The focus of a purposeful future is the cross over between the two models.The more harmonious the integration the greater the success of the model.

With people in their early retirement, matching abilities to job roles andresponsibilities is simpler and could be similar to applying for a job in todaysmarket.

A purposeful future supports at home care and as the resident ages they areencouraged to remain within the home. Therefore finding purposeful activitiesfor people with dementia or other illnesses is the challenge. A strongunderstanding of the cognitive, physical, and emotional abilities and inabilitiesof the person is required before assigning activities.

Carly Hellen, in her book Using Activities for Behaviour Intervention statesWork is a source of a meaningful quality of life. Residents with dementia allwere viable, active citizens in their homes, jobs, and community. Thechallenge is to take the tasks that they at one time were engaged in easily,

and successfully adapt or modify them for a continued sense of purposefulparticipation.

NOT THISLIKE THIS

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The activities must focus on the abilities not limitations, promoting positivebehaviours. They must provide opportunities for verbal and non-verbalcommunication. Being respectful of the residents time the activities must bemeaningful and promote a sense of purpose.

Hellen describes four types of meaningful activities for people with dementia:

a. Normalisation Acitivies.Looking for familiar tasks and modifying them as required.

b. Thinking Activities.The ability to think and remember helps people with dementia toengage in a meaningful response.

c. Physical Activities

Persons with dementia are often physically strong and need physicalactivities to maintain their well being.

d. Social ActivitiesPlenty of social activities and engagement with other residents andmore importantly the larger community.

The activities must focus on the abilities not limitations, promoting positivebehaviours. They must provide opportunities for verbal and non-verbalcommunication. Being respectful of the residents time the activities must bemeaningful and promote a sense of purpose.

Training of people is also a key to stronger engagement within the business.The learning of new skills will not only empower the residents but also providethem a feeling of growth and development. The more people learn andengage with the business the greater the cross over between the businessand the retirement village.

2. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENTBringing the community into the model is a key factorto the overall success of the business. We see thecommunity as much more than customers for ourbusiness. We aim to engage the community throughopen days where people can come sample theproducts or learn how the product is made.

We will also go into the community and take with us our new skills andknowledge, participating at local community markets and trade shows.

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We also see the community being more engaged with the retirement villageonce a successful micro business has been created

3. CONCEPTUAL BUSINESS PLAN

The business plan is dependent on each business being successful in theirown right. A poorly managed micro business will only be a financial drain onthe retirement village and likewise any meaningful activity created within amicro business will have nil effect if the retirement village is not run efficiently.

Each resident will have the ability to buy shares in the micro business. Unlesselected to the advisory board, share owners will be silent investors in thebusiness. Prior to purchasing or the selling of a share the business isevaluated and a value assigned to the business and share price.

As the business grows the money will be reinvested in improving facilitieswithin the village. New facilities will be assessed based on their ability toincrease the cross over of the three key areas.

For instance if the board would likegreater community engagement they maychoose to purchase a bus or increasingtheir marketing budget.

If the board would like to

increase the involvement of theresidents within the microindustry perhaps more trainingcould be given or specialist staffcould be employed.

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4. WORKING EXAMPLE: A WINERY

As an example of this concept we have explored a retirement village that isbuilt into an existing winery. We highlight many other options would beavailable, ie an olive grove, lavender farm or for the inner city we could createteas, jams, soaps, turn wood or even start a micro brewery.

4.1 Introduction

This business plan combines both a retirement village with a productivevineyard. The aim of the plan is to

a) To develop a strategy for successfully combining the vineyard and theretirement village.

b) To develop and determine the social value and potential of combiningtwo successful industries.c) To ensure the inclusion of the local community.

4.2 The Business.

It is important to purchase an established, maturevineyard that is already productive. We have foundthe below block of land for sale in the Hunter Valley,NSW. An added advantage of going to the countryis the land is much cheaper than that in the city.$2.95million for 172 acres. The property also has a
http://www.domain.com.au/ore/Public/Gallery/Photo.aspx?adid=2009736919&pic=1&mode=Buy


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managers cottage, traditional winery facility and a cellar door, all importantfacilities to help create purposeful tasks at the village.

The vineyard is only 15minutes to the town of Cessnock which is on the majortrain line to Sydney. The closest hospital is at Maitland which is 45minutes

away.

ESTABLISHED WINE ESTATE* Established wine estate* Superb central Pokolbin location* Traditional winery facility* 172 acres of prime land* 2 separate titles* 63 acres of old vine red & white vineyard* History of producing award winning wines* Cellar door facility* Country managers accommodation* 100 meg water licence with large storage dam

* Zoning and land size would suit integrated tourism facility (STCA)


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4.3 The Retirement Village

A low impact eco village will be built into thelandscape of the winery. The village will containapproximately 30 townhouses.

The village design will support at home care and assuch each house will be designed to facilitate homeliving care to avoid people needing to leave their homes once greater care isrequired.

Each house will be designed with the ability to install functions or addmodules that will assist the resident as they age and require greater care.The house is to be designed to grow with the resident in levels of care.Should the residents move out or pass, the modules can be removed to caterfor an able bodied resident if required.

The residents will have the option to purchase shares in the winery business.Unless elected onto the advisory board each resident will be a silent investor.The money raised will assist in the operation of the winery and maintenanceof the vineyard. On the sale of the home the resident will have the option tocash in their equity at current value. The transition from a retirement homeinto the aged care room will also be subsidised.

All residents are responsible for paying their own council rates, water ratesand water charges. Residents are also responsible for their own electricity use,telephone and home contents insurance. Residents must maintain the interiorof their home and are responsible for the cost of refurbishment when theyleave the village.

Residents will also be required to pay a proportion of the operating costs ofthe common facilities. This will pay for common area rates, insurance, utilities,external property maintenance, management costs, etc.

All profit from the winery will be invested back into the business. As thebusiness grows assets and facilities will be purchased or improved for theresidents, ie a doctors surgery and equipment, a bed and breakfast hotel forguests and family members or subsidised medication.

Investments back into the village will be assessed in accordance to whichsector requires assistance. For instance, should the board agree that greatercommunity engagement is required a bus could be purchased that operatesspecialist winery tours or can take the residents on a promotional tour throughthe local and district communities.

4.4 Business Integration

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Each business must be able to runindependently of each other. The successof this model is determined by the successof each of the two separate entities.

The property will employ a GeneralManager who is responsible for bothbusinesses . The GM will haveunderneath them a head winemaker incharge of the vineyard operations and an operations officer in charge of theretirement operations. All roles will need to be filled with experiencedoperators with a proven track record of success.

On application to the village or home, each person is assessed on their abilityto contribute to a wide range of meaningful activities. Each activitycontributes to a common goal. Running a successful vineyard.

As mentioned previously finding roles for people in early retirement is fairlysimple. Below is a list of potential activities for someone with dementia.

a. Normalisation Acitivies.Looking for familiar tasks and modifying them as required.Example: gardening, cooking or simple maintenance tasks.Planting the roses at the end of the run of vines or baking cakesfor sale in the vineyard shop.

b. Thinking Activities.The ability to think and remember helps people with dementia toengage in a meaningful response, ie wine tasting. Describing toguests of our vineyard the palate of each of the wines on offer.Or simply sitting out front of the restaurant to show guests whereit is.

c. Physical ActivitiesPersons with dementia are often physically strong and needphysical activities to maintain their well being. Examples includemowing the lawn to working in the shed.

d. Social ActivitiesPlenty of social activities will be on offer at our vineyard. Wemay also need a little B&B for all the families and friends thatmight want to stay the night

4.5 Projected Personnel Requirements

We have broken the personnel requirements into residents and non residents.We respect that the residents have retired and while should still be challenged,

should not be required for any fulltime positions

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a. Non residents:

General ManagerAssistant to the General ManagerMaintenance Manager

Village:1. Head Clinician2. Assistant Clinician3. Operations Officer4. Assistant to the Operations Officer5. Maintenance StaffVineyard:1. Winemaker2. Assistant Winemaker -3. Sales Manager - Head of sales and marketing4. Harvest workers As required.

5. Temporary bottling workers - As required.6. Maintenance Staff7. Chef8. Restaurant staff

b. Residents:

1. Board of Directors2. Tasting Room managers and sales staff (onsite and outreach)3. Caf cooks and sales staff4. Vineyard tour guide5. Maintenance team6. Book keepers7. Customer service representatives8. Marketing team9. Human resources10. Inventory management and control

4.6 Community Engagement

The winery will be a destination for wine tasting tours. The majority of thewine will be sold out of the tasting room, where residents are able to talk to

and engage with customers. Theresidents will need to learn about eachwine in order to discuss them in full withthe customers.

Wine will also be sold at local marketsand community gatherings throughoutreach teams. The outreach teamswill gather around a large tasting tableand engage in the vibrancy of thecommunity markets. Encouraging

people to buy the wines or just stop byfor a chat.

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When the grapes are ready to be picked, the harvest will be carried out byyoung people from the community. Each day during harvest afternoon tea willbe provided by the residents to ensure they are kept involved in the workingsof the vineyard.

Tours of the winery can also be given by the residents.

4.7 Working Example Conclusion

The key to success of this concept will be both acceptance of the winery andits products by the community and the operation and management of theretirement village. Each entity must be run as an equally important yetseparate stand alone business.

The state of the winery will be a direct and obvious link to the happiness of thevillage. The residents must feel proud of the wines and the facility as a whole.Engaged in meaningful tasks they should feel responsible and a contributingfactor to the success of the winery.


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5. RESEARCH COMPONENT

An RMIT research team has been established to investigate further this

concept. A strong collaboration between the research team and thecompetition team is required for a successful outcome to this greater project.

5.1 Research Project Description

The Wine and Wellbeing project will develop a model to support the wellbeingof the older people living at a complex for older people built around a workingvineyard. Our research will focus on four main areas:

(1) International survey of micro industry and social enterprise models of agedcare. Knowledge will also be gathered from other population groups andlocations that have embarked on similar projects locally and internationallysuch as youth, people with disabilities and/or mental illness and low incomecommunities. This component is crucial so as to learn from what has workedwell and to avoid past mistakes, for example in the disability and mentalhealth fields.

(2) Viable business models for the winery and aged residential complexincluding business impact statements.

(3) Health and wellbeing of older people in residential complexes andengagement with the local community as well as maintaining and furtherdeveloping connections with family and friends. An integrated model isproposed where older and younger people are mixing and using communityfacilities such as libraries, cafes etc. Notions of community engagement willinclude older people going out into the wider community and using communityfacilities with members of the wider community coming into the complex on afrequent basis. This will be for activities and projects related to both the wineryand aged care. Strong linkages will be developed with local schools anduniversities for work experience related to area of study as well as volunteeropportunities. Likewise opportunities will be explored for participation of the

older people in local community groups and organisations. The use ofinformation communication technology (ICT) tools for individual andcommunity interaction wellbeing will be an important component at this stage.

5.2 Project timelines: April 2013-February 2014

April Pre-planning

May Reference group meeting

Ethics application

June Literature Review


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July Stage 1: Needs analysis

Stage 2: Task analysis

August Stages 3 & 4 Persona andscenario

developmentStage 5: Usability testing

September Review and refinement of models andconcepts

October Stage 1: Student analysis


November Stages 3 & 4 Persona andscenario

development

Stage 5: Usability testing

December Review and refinement of models andconcepts

January Report preparation, writing anddissemination

February Preparation of papers for referredpublications and conference presentation

5.3 Research Project Team Members

Name Position Location

Jennifer Martin

[email protected]

+61 3 9925 3131

Associate Professor ofSocial Work

Lead Chief Investigator

School of Global, Urbanand Social Studies

RMIT

Charlotte Williams

[email protected]

Professor of SocialWork

Chief Investigator


RMIT

Elspeth McKay

[email protected]

Associate Professor ofBusiness InformationTechnology

Chief Investigator

School of BusinessInformation Technologyand Logistics

RMIT

Phillip Maude

[email protected]

Associate Professor ofNursing

Chief Investigator

School of Science,Engineering and Health

RMIT

Linette Hawkins

[email protected]

Work IntegratedLearning

Chief Investigator


RMIT
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


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6. CONCLUSIONWe look forward to continually developing this project in close collaborationwith RMIT and industry professionals. While we are proud to present thisconcept in the RMIT Ageing competition we see this as only the start of a

journey to better the lives of our ageing population.

The outcome of the project will be:

- an innovative model of residential aged care supported by InformationCommunication Technology;

- improved residential experiences for older people supported by ICT;

- increased opportunities for older people to participate in purposeful andrewarding activities in a residential setting; (and)

- increased multidisciplinary collaboration between industry and academia;designing creative solutions underpinned by sound theoretical underpinnings,

addressing major demographic, economic and social problems.


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ANNEXURE 1

Project Name:A Purposeful Future: Wine and Wellbeing

1. Project Description

The project will develop a model to support the wellbeing of the older people living ata complex for older people built around a working vineyard. Our research will focuson four main areas:(1) International survey of micro industry and social enterprise models of aged care.Knowledge will also be gathered from other population groups and locations thathave embarked on similar projects locally and internationally such as youth, peoplewith disabilities and/or mental illness and low income communities. This componentis crucial so as to learn from what has worked well and to avoid past mistakes, forexample in the disability and mental health fields.(2) Viable business models for the winery and aged residential complex includingbusiness impact statements.

(3) Health and wellbeing of older people in residential complexes and engagementwith the local community as well as maintaining and further developing connectionswith family and friends. An integrated model is proposed where older and youngerpeople are mixing and using community facilities such as libraries, cafes etc. Notionsof community engagement will include older people going out into the widercommunity and using community facilities with members of the wider communitycoming into the complex on a frequent basis. This will be for activities and projectsrelated to both the winery and aged care. Strong linkages will be developed with localschools and universities for work experience related to area of study as well asvolunteer opportunities. Likewise opportunities will be explored for participation of theolder people in local community groups and organisations. The use of informationcommunication technology (ICT) tools for individual and community interaction

wellbeing will be an important component at this stage.

Aim: The aim of the project is to develop an innovative residential concept thatpromotes healthy ageing through active engagement and participation in meaningfulactivities. The project investigates an innovative and sustainable living model forolder people, who choose to reside in a purpose built complex that providesopportunities for engagement and participation in a winery business co-located onthe property. Broader community engagement is a key feature of the design as wellas access to world class health care.

Background: The age profile of the Australian population is changing as the

population is growing, ageing and living longer. It has been estimated that by 2050more than one in 20 workers will be employed in aged care (AIHW, 2012). Thechanging population profile and increased aged care workforce has seen a rapidincrease on health expenditure as a percentage of gross domestic product. This iswithin large scale reforms of the health sector with a rethinking of traditional roles ofhealth professionals and their education and training requirements. Many of the newroles will be in direct care as well as prevention to identify health and wellbeingissues early. A focus is on better alignment and coordination of services that arecognisant of new and emerging technologies such as e-health, tele-heath and theuse of avatars as well as face to face practices. In addition to direct clinical work thisgives rise to new opportunities for service delivery in aged care (Cormack, 2012).However to date a focus has been on risk and deficit models. Scant attention hasbeen given to innovative design concepts that focus on older peoples strengths andresources and sense of purpose as they grow older (Martin, 2012). There is a


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growing burden of chronic disease, workforce pressures and unacceptable inequitiesin health outcomes and access to services (DOHA, 2010, p.9).

Dementia is the third main cause of death in Australia (AIHW, 2012). In 2011 it wasestimated that 222,000 Australians (1%) had dementia. It is projected that by 2031this number will increase to over 464,000 (1.6%) (AIHW, 2012, p. 317). Research

findings suggest these figures are in fact too low and that the prevalence of dementiamay be much higher with no national prevalence or incidence data readily available.There are no data subsets for diverse population groups including Aboriginal andTorres Strait Islanders and people from CALD backgrounds. (Alzheimers DiseaseInternational, 2009; AIHW, 2012; Anstey et al., 2010). While generally associatedwith the elderly, dementia is not a normal part of the ageing process. Many olderpeople well advanced in years retain full intellectual functioning. Its occurrence isdetermined by genetic predisposition, family history and general health and wellbeing.Dementia of the Alzheimers type affects 6% of people in Australia over sixty-fiveyears of age. This percentage rises to 11% for those aged over seventy-five years. Itis estimated that half of all permanent residents in Australian aged care facilities arediagnosed with dementia and have high care needs (AIHW 2011).

Australias ageing population means that a significant strain will be placed on thehealth budget as currently fiscal spending on people aged 65 years and over is fourtimes greater than the rest of the population (HWA, 2011). Health needs tend tobecome more complex as people age. A 2009 study of older Australians living in thecommunity found that approximately half (49%) of those aged 65-74 years had fiveor more chronic conditions. For those aged 85 years and over this increased to 70per cent (AIHW,2011). A priority for strategic planning for sustainable health care intothe future is on wellness, prevention and primary health care. These are also priorityareas identified by the World Health Organisation (WHO) as populations around theworld are managing and planning for growing and aging populations. The WHOslogan of good health adds life to years sends a message of older people havingactive and productive lives. A focus is on the resourcefulness and roles of olderpeople in their families and communities as opposed to a disease and deficits modelof ageing (WHO, 2012, p.1). Attention is increasingly focused on the wellbeing ofolder people. However inconsistent research findings show a simultaneous high lifesatisfaction score alongside high suicide rates (Chong, 2007). A recent study of olderAustralians found that the majority of respondents, 84 per cent, felt positive abouttheir quality of life, However the researchers lamented the lack of data available oncause of death and hence no analysis of mortality patterns, including suicide (AIHW,2012). A substantial proportion of older people are diagnosed with mental illness. In2007, 8% of older people living in the community were found to have a mental illness,predominantly depression, with this figure increasing for those in residential settings(ABS, 2009). The scarcity of reliable research on the health and wellbeing needs of

older people from all backgrounds is concerning (Martin, 2013).For older people without health insurance the high costs of treatment relative toincome can mean lengthy delays in treatment on public hospital waiting lists andreduced medical options. The established link between poor heath outcomes andpoverty requires policies and services targeted specifically at addressing the healthand economic needs of low income earners. A study of older people in China foundthat high health expenditure was a major cause of poverty for those living in ruralareas (Liu et al., 1998). Efforts are required to improve health care systeminfrastructure, accessibility and affordability and suitability. Health policies need tobe attuned to demographic transitions, be responsive to changing age structures andprovide opportunities for education and job creation. This approach can createeconomic growth at the same as providing necessary services.


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Case study design: The project will be conducted in the Hunter Valley regionfocusing on the surrounding vicinity of the proposed complex. The proposed site ofthe complex is Pokolbin. This is a small town with a population of 625 located in theCessnock City Council Local Government Area within the Singleton Shire. This LGAalso includes Mount View, Broke, Rothbury and Branxton. This geographic area hasbeen chosen as this is the population most likely to consider moving into theproposed complex. It will be expanded to include other municipalities identified inconsultation with key community informants.

Method: Stage 1: Needs Analysis: Individual Interviews will be conducted witholder people using a narrative approach contemplating moving into residentialaccommodation to ascertain their needs, interests, concerns and fears of moving intoa more supported living environment. Feedback will be sought on the design conceptand features of an aged accommodation complex co-located with a winery with olderpeople asked to rank or rate these on ordinal scales. Questions will also be includedon familiarity and usage of ICT tools such as iPads, laptop and desktop computers.

Contextual Interviews: Contextual interviews will be conducted that involve observingand listening to older people while they are engaged with technologies in localcommunity venues. These interviews will provide information on the physical andsocial environment as well as the technologies available including means of access,familiarity and level of comfort and support. Contextual information will focus on theolder persons levels of ICT competency. Cross correlations will be done betweenthese two sets of interviews to gauge different levels of engagement with ICTaccording to baseline knowledge and skills in ICT.Focus Groups: Focus groups will be conducted with older people accessed throughexisting services and clubs for senior citizens that match the target demographic ofthe project. These groups will be approached and invited to participate in the projectthrough pre-existing relationships with members of the research team. The

discussion will follow up in-depth issues raised in the individual and contextualinterviews and focus on attitudes, needs, concerns and interests with regard to thedesign concept including application of ICT to meet care and activity needs andsupport available.Data will be gained about the views of older people on residential accommodationoptions with shared or diverse viewpoints triggering more in-depth discussions.These groups will also be used as an opportunity to gauge older peoples responsesto ideas and prototypes.

Stage 2: Task Analysis:Task analysis will be used to collect information on howolder people adapt and perform learning tasks providing information on the activitiesthat the aged care complex and winery must support and the scope and nature of

these. Co-variant analysis will be used to examine the relationship between engagingin meaningful activities (especially if that activity relates to something the person wasonce familiar with), learning, repetitive tasks and dementia. The task analysisfindings will inform decisions on the choices available for different activities thatmatch older peoples goals, tasks, and abilities and the steps involved. These stepswill be refined to support a design concept that facilitates older people achieving theirgoals in the most efficient, effective and satisfying manner.

Stage 3: Personas: Personas will be used as hypothetical constructs that embodythe main features of the older persons group (Martin et al., 2007). Personas will aidin identifying different kinds of older people who may reside in the complex.Ultimately the personas must be satisfied with that is delivered. These will include

cross cultural personas on people with dementia and depression and physical healthcare needs.


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Stage 4: Scenarios: Scenarios will provide greater detail about older people andtheir particular needs. The most common scenarios that depict the needs and wishesof older people and the tasks they need to perform will be written considering crosscultural considerations and requirements.Stage 5: Usability Testing: Continuous feedback will be obtained by conductingusability tests frequently on concepts, particularly early on in the design process.Usability tests will assess both performance and design preferences by collectingdata on: usability problems, performance, task completion, speed, and levels ofsatisfaction.

2. Project Rationale

Improved aged care residential, health and wellbeing outcomes, andemployment opportunities: The models designed during the study will be tailoredto the specific needs of older people seeking residential accommodation and as aresult will lead to improved design outcomes and levels of satisfaction. For someolder people the design will need to be responsive to stringent requirements set bytreating healthcare professionals. This supported living experience will meet national

residential aged care standards and professional requirements. Older people will beprovided with a wider range of supported living and employment opportunities.

Innovation: The development of an aged accommodation complex of co-locatedwith a winery is highly innovative and this is the first of its kind in the world. A furtherinnovation is a broader consideration of aged care that focuses on peoples abilitiesand sense of purpose rather than a deficits model focusing on care needs alone. Theuse of design personas and scenarios to develop the concept and ICT models tosupport the project is particularly innovative.

Strategic alignment: The project is strategically aligned with RMITs researchpriorities.

RMIT is proud of its reputation as a place where investigations of real world issues

results in practical solutions. We are serious about extending our global reach inresearch activities that solve critical problems affecting communities and theenvironment. Equally we acknowledge the timeliness of this project, as one whichreflects our trans-disciplinary approach to address both the technology and socialaspects, and create innovative solutions to difficult problems. It is exciting to see thisproject falls within three of our key global university research communities. Thesefunded communities provide the essential collaborative and supportive environmentsto focus our researchers activities:

designing the future utilizing expertise in architecture, engineering, scienceand social science in collaboration to ensure that future design is bothinspired and functional. This project provides a novel approach to aged care,not yet sufficiently tested by research.

smart technology solutions the technology investigation outlined in thisproject sits equally well amongst the vast applications that arise from thiscommunity of researchers. We anticipate several breakthroughs from thisproject to help Australia understand how to best utilise technology for theadvancement of older persons health and wellbeing.

the future of cities research tackling population growth and the social andenvironmental issues associated with rapid urban expansion. Findings fromthis project will impact on community wellbeing for the planning anddevelopment of healthy cities focusing on our growing older population andtheir increasing health and wellbeing needs into the future.

Research findings will be disseminated at local and international conferences onarchitecture and design, aged care, mental health and wellbeing, nursing, social workand human computer interaction as well as at local community meetings. Project


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findings will be published in high ranking journals in these areas as well as localmedia outlets and publications targeted specifically at older people.

Research Environment:

Multi-disciplinary projectbased learning

X Work-integratedlearning

X Potential to growcore researchcapabilities locallyandinternationally

X

Strengthening ordeveloping research

cluster capability

X Potential forpublicationopportunities

X Likelihood ofsecuring revenuestream frompotentialcommercialisation

X

Research to align withgrowth market

segments which arelikely to generate

increasing revenuestream

X Potential tostrengthen teaching& learning programsor studentparticipation

X Establishment ofvital externalrelationships ornetworks which islikely to lead tofurther researchopportunities

X

University wide application: The project has university wide application due to themultidisciplinary teamwork approach between staff and students across a wide rangeof disciplines. The models developed can be adapted to other design concepts thatinvolve staff and students from other parts of the university. The project design canalso be applied to metropolitan and international contexts thus further supporting theRMIT local and global focus.

Value for money: The project is value for money as the only costs requested are fora Research Associate for twelve weeks and teaching relief for 48 hours. AnAustralian Research Council, Linkage application for a larger project will bedeveloped based on these outcomes.

3. Project Outcomes

The outcome of the project will be:

- an innovative model of residential aged care supported by ICT;- improved residential experiences for older people supported by ICT;

- increased opportunities for older people to participate in purposeful and rewardingactivities in a residential setting; (and)

- increased multidisciplinary collaboration between industry and academia; designingcreative solutions underpinned by sound theoretical underpinnings, addressing majordemographic, economic and social problems.

4. Project timelines: April 2013-February 2014

April Pre-planning


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May Reference group meeting

Ethics application

June Literature Review

July Stage 1: Needs analysis


August Stages 3 & 4 Persona andscenario

development


September Review and refinement of models andconcepts

October Stage 1: Student analysis


November Stages 3 & 4 Persona andscenario

development


December Review and refinement of models andconcepts

January Report preparation, writing anddissemination

February Preparation of papers for referred

publications and conference presentation

5. Evaluation framework

The project design has a built in evaluation component in the feasibility testing.

6. Funding Requested

DIRECT COSTS Total

Travel: Flights: Tullamarine toNewcastle return:$509.00x2x3trips

Return travel to airport$70.00x2x3:

Car Hire:

$120.00 per day x 8 days

$3,054.00

$420.00

$960.00

Accommodation and per $190.00 x2x8 nights $3,040.00


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diem allowance:

Staffing: Research AssociateAcademic Level A6 plus

35.91% on costs+estimate 6% raise x 12weeks:

$25,518.00

Total: 32,992.00

Budget J ustification:A Research Associate is required for 12 weeks to conduct thedata collection and analysis. The Research Associate will take primary responsibilityfor the substantial fieldwork and interview regime which the project methodologyrests upon. While other researchers will join the Research Associate this person will

take primary responsibility for organizing and managing the f ieldwork. In addition thisperson will work closely with the communities and stakeholder organizations toensure smooth access to data, and appropriate and regular reporting. Our previousexperience with a related research project has shown this is a level of responsibility,requiring mature and independent decision-making and advanced research andanalytic skills that necessitate this level of appointment. The Research Associate willbe well experienced and have a proven track record in working effectively with olderpeople and this mixed methods qualitative and quantitative research design. Thetravel and accommodation costs are calculated for the Chief Investigator andResearch Associate to conduct the interviews on site in the vicinity of the proposedcomplex with older population catchment area.

7. Project Participants

A total of 100 interviews will be conducted with older people. All participants ininterviews and focus groups will be aged 60 years and over and will not be in adependency relationship with any member of the research team. The research willcomply with the NMHRC guidelines for ethical conduct, including vulnerability andinformed consent. The researchers are well aware of the ethical requirements ofinformed consent and these will be strictly adhered to. No pressure will be put onpeople to participate.

8. Commencement Date: April 2013


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Martin, J., McKay, E., Hawkins, L., & Murthy, V. K. (2007) Design-personae:Matching students' learning profiles in web-based education. In McKay. E(Ed.), Enhancing learning through human-computer interaction (pp. 266).London: Idea Group Reference. 110-131

World Health Organisation. (2012). Ageing and life course, Geneva: WHO Press.Beyondblue depression in older age: a scoping study. Final Report National AgeingResearch Institute (NARI), September 2009Meaning and Purpose in Life and Well-being: a Life-span Perspective Gary T. Reker,Edward J. Peacock and Paul T. P. Wong J Gerontol (1987) 42 (1): 44-49
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