I did some keynote speeches at the Fall Metropolitan Conference on Aging
in Minneapolis last week. I received a note from Cathy Clairmont that she would
pick me up at the airport. The stationery the note was on said English Rose Suites.
I assumed that was the hotel. I learned, however, that the suites are a group of
homes for seniors that need assistance--part of the smaller is better
"green revolution" in services to seniors.

My mission is to help people live with purpose and live well into their hundreds.
My role model is the Energizer Bunny, with alkaline batteries. He just keeps going
and going. Alkaline batteries not only last longer, they maintain a constant energy
level and then die quickly.

But I know that bad things happen to good people and some people develop diseases
or disabilities that impair aging well. The prospect of spending years in a nursing home
is very depressing.

In the 1970s I was busy with the "normalization" movement, getting people with
mental retardation out of the institutions and living and working in the community.
It was a wonderful, heady time seeing people with IQs of 50 set free from the
institutions and living in group homes or supervised apartments and working in a
wide variety of jobs. In the same era, similar good things were happening with
institutionalized psychiatric patients.

Today there is a comparable revolution brewing for elderly people who have disabilities.
The green revolution or Green House® projects provide an alternative to sterile
nursing homes with their double occupancy rooms, bureaucracy, and unpalatable food.
The vision comes from Dr. William Thomas and has start up funding from the
Robert Woodcock Johnson Foundation. Dr. Thomas envisioned homes for 6-10
people with plants, pets, sunshine and even children. The staff, and when
possible the residents, prepare the meals and all eat together. The movement isn't limited
to Dr. Thomas' model. Home grown variations are popping up around the country.
Online information includes: http://www.thegreenhouseproject.com. 

Despite our population getting older and managed care sending many stroke
and surgery patients to nursing homes for rehabilitation, the number of nursing
home beds in the U.S. has not been growing nearly as fast as the aging population.
Reasons include more people being healthier at older ages, assisted living and
independent living alternatives, and in the future, the green revolution. The costs are roughly
comparable to nursing home care. Besides helping seniors, the homes improve
the morale of the staff. The movement received publicity from NPR,
the October AARP Bulletin, and Congressional hearings.

My hope is that we all live very long, healthy, rewarding lives, and when we die
we take a cue from the alkaline batteries. But if things don't work out that way,
it's good to know there is an option of a good quality of life even with disabilities.