Georgia Health Matters
The State Division of Aging Services contracts and partners with 12 Area Agencies on Aging to implement a cadre of home and community-based services enabling individual Georgians to “live longer, live safely, and live well” through the Older Americans Act, state appropriations, and special grant awarded funding.
DAS and its partners established a strong statewide foundation for implementation and dissemination of at least eight short-term, community-based, evidence-based health and wellness and caregiver interventions. Falls prevention is the focus of two such programs: 1) Matter of Balance (MOB) and 2) Tai Chi for Arthritis (TCA). While Title IIID of the Older Americans Act supports continued implementation of these evidence based practices, additional funding is needed to sustain and increase access to these workshops.
DAS’s partners with Georgia Gear to enrich the lives of older adults. Through the Georgia Health Matters program, we promote healthy aging and healthy living by focusing on chronic disease prevention and health promotion related to nutrition, physical activity, and lifestyle management of older adults. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Georgia Health Matters has offered the following programs virtually: Tai Chi for Arthritis, Chronic Disease Self-Management Program, Chronic Pain Self-Management Program, Diabetes Self-Management Program, Aging Mastery Program, and Bingocize.