Ursel J. McElroy

I think I would also want to have many of our older individuals to be present in the decisions that are made on their behalf.

I think often I am a part of policymaking, policy setting decisions that do not include the very people that will be most impacted.

And I think it is going to be really important for us to tune in to what their needs are, to understand what their experiences are, and to appreciate how we can close the gap between what they desire and what we've been able to provide so far.

Finally, I would like to see true investments.

and aging, investments that begin sooner in life, an appreciation for the upstream impacts and how you can make a difference if you just begin a little sooner, if you just hit that pivotal time just a bit earlier, helping people to eat healthier, helping people to appreciate what it means to live in a safe and secure environment.

helping people to understand what it means when we say health literacy, what it means to prepare yourself as you continue to age throughout the lifespan.

Interestingly, many individuals do not begin to think about, contemplate, put in place steps for themselves or really understand the value until they have reached it.

a later age.

But I would suggest and I would recommend that we make it a part of our lifespan.

We make it a part of everyday living, that we understand the things that we can do, that we empower each and every one of us so that we have the chance to live well as we age.

It's not just about

increasing the amount of time that you're on this earth, it is absolutely about the quality of time you have while you're on this earth.

And there are many things that we can do throughout the lifespan to be sure that we have that quality life that we all so much desire.

I believe it's really important to have those public-private partnerships.

This is not an issue that can be addressed by government alone, nor is it an issue that can be addressed by the private sector alone.

When I think of examples of what it means to age in a healthy way, many of the things that we look forward to will require those really strong relationships, such as building structures, making sure that we have neighborhoods that are conducive to healthy aging.

That will require public-private partnerships.

When we begin to look at healthcare,

when we look at education, when we look at financing long-term care, there are so many opportunities for public-private partnerships to strengthen the infrastructure that we have created for aging in a healthy way.

And I would like to see an expansion of those partnerships.