Climbing, Parkinson's, and Discovering What's Possible

AgingIN CEO Susan Ryan welcomes nurse, longtime eldercare leader, and author Suellen Beatty to discuss her forthcoming book, She Would Rather Die: Why Long-Term Care Must Change—and How Courageous Leaders Can Transform Institutions into Vibrant Communities.  In addition to discussing what it takes to transform long-term care into a place people truly experience as home, Beatty draws on her 35 years at Sherbrooke Community Centre in Saskatoon, Canada, to examine how challenging institutional practices, building trust, empowering staff, and fostering inclusion can reshape the culture of care.  From rethinking dementia care and reducing hierarchy, to creating intergenerational connections, she offers practical lessons on putting people at the center of daily life. Her message to leaders: meaningful culture change begins with examining our own beliefs and behaviors and taking responsibility for creating a better way forward. More about Sherbrooke here: https://www.sherbrookecommunitycentre.ca. More information about AgingIN: https://aginginnovation.org

In this episode, host Susan Ryan welcomes internationally recognized dementia care pioneer John Zeisel for a conversation about seeing beyond a diagnosis and recognizing the person who remains.  Drawing on his work in dementia care, environmental design, and creative engagement, Zeisel explores how supportive environments, meaningful relationships, and opportunities for artistic expression can foster dignity, purpose, and connection.  In addition to making the case for a more inclusive vision of aging that is grounded in curiosity, personhood, and authentic quality of life, Zeisel challenges conventional ideas about longevity and cognitive decline. More about Zeisel and his podcast, Demystifying Dementia, here: https://demystifyingdementia.org

How can senior living environments support brain health, preserve identity, and help residents feel at home? In this episode of Brain Bytes, Kelly talks with Sandi Soraci, director of senior living strategies for Tarkett North America, about how thoughtful design can do more than meet safety and functional needs.    Kelly and Sandi explain how the built environment can reduce cognitive and sensory demands, support independence, and create opportunities for meaningful connection.  The conversation explores the power of "sticky spaces," comfortable places along residents' everyday paths where spontaneous interactions can happen naturally, and how glare, visual patterns, background noise, and competing conversations can increase cognitive load and fatigue. Looking ahead, Sandi makes the case for treating belonging as an intentional design outcome and extending cognitive-supportive design beyond memory care into independent and assisted living. The challenge for the industry is to connect design investments to measurable outcomes, including resident satisfaction, caregiver experience, family confidence, occupancy, and operational efficiency. For more information on Tarkett: https://commercial.tarkett.com/

Neurologist Doug Redosh, MD, and Up ENDing Parkinson's founder Molly Cupka join AgingIN CEO Susan Ryan to explore the powerful connection between exercise, climbing, confidence, and community. Doug shares his personal experience with Parkinson's and how climbing helped him reconnect with something he loved. Molly explains how one climber with Parkinson's inspired her to create Up ENDing Parkinson's, which now connects people with Parkinson's to climbing programs across the country. Their conversation explores how climbing can support strength, balance, focus, and connection, as well as help people move beyond what they think is possible. More about Up Ending Parkinson's here: https://www.upendingparkinsons.org/.  More information on AgingIN here: https://aginginnovation.org  

Aging policy expert, author, and journalist Howard Gleckman joins AgingIN CEO Susan Ryan to explore the fragmented U.S. long-term care system, the challenges of financing care, the workforce crisis, and the limitations of the "aging in place" ideal.  Howard and Susan make make the case for aging in the right place, wherever a person can experience the care, autonomy, connection and community they need. Their conversation also highlights the Leonard Florence Center for Living, a Boston-based Green House home that demonstrates how even highly complex care can be delivered in a true home environment. Susan and Howard close with a message for families and policymakers alike: plan ahead, rethink assumptions about long-term care, and build a system that supports people wherever they call home. More about Howard, including his book Caring for Our Parents, here: https://howardgleckman.com.  Information on AgingIN Education Opportunities: https://aginginnovation.org/solutions/education/

Barbara Infante joins AgingIN CEO Susan Ryan to share how a family member's difficult rehabilitation experience led her from a 25-year career in process improvement and project management into aging services. Barb's secret sauce is about looking for what's working and sharing the ideas so others can build on them. Through her initiative, Eldercare Quest, she has taken to the road visiting aging services communities across the country to discover person-centered practices that are working well.  In today's episode, she shares some remarkable examples she's discovered along with way and lessons senior living providers can learn from each other.  Susan and Barb also discuss Agile Aging, a company Barb founded to help senior living organizations turn overwhelm into momentum by prioritizing initiatives, strengthening teams, and creating sustainable systems for change. More about Agile Aging here: https://www.agile-aging.com/. Information on AgingIN Education Opportunities: https://aginginnovation.org/solutions/education/

Lori Mars, director of the National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA), joins the show this week to explore elder abuse, ageism, and what can be done to prevent both. AgingIN CEO Susan Ryan sits down with Lori to discuss the different forms of elder mistreatment, including physical, psychological, sexual, and financial abuse, as well as neglect and self-neglect, and why recognizing the signs matters.  Lori also explains how ageism can devalue older adults and create conditions that increase the risk of abuse. The conversation highlights the power of intergenerational connection, multidisciplinary approaches to elder justice, and programs that support caregivers and promote restorative justice. Lori also shares her personal journey into elder justice and the NCEA's work providing education, research and resources to professionals, families and the public. The message is simple: respecting the dignity and humanity of older adults is essential to preventing abuse. More about NCEA here: https://ncea.usc.edu

James Balda, president and CEO of Argentum, joins Elevate Eldercare this week to explore how senior living can help address some of the biggest challenges facing aging and long-term care.  Balda sits down with AgingIN CEO Susan Ryan to discuss his journey to Argentum and the organization's policy priorities, including developing stronger care workforce pipelines, expanding senior housing, and finding new ways to serve the "forgotten middle," older adults who struggle to afford private-pay care but don't qualify for Medicaid. The conversation also explores what quality senior living should look like: home-like environments, resident choice, dignity, social connection, meaningful engagement, and strong memory care. He and Susan also delve into the potential of AI and other technologies to support caregivers while emphasizing that technology should enhance—not replace—the human side of care. The episode closes with a call to change the public narrative around senior living through storytelling and to give residents, families, and caregivers a stronger voice in shaping the future of aging. More about Argentum here: https://www.argentum.org/  Information on AgingIN Education Opportunities: https://aginginnovation.org/solutions/education/  

What we eat plays a critical role in brain health, muscle strength, bone health, and healthy aging. In this episode of Brain Bytes, Kelly Tremblay talks with Jenny Overly, senior director of nutrition and wellness for CCL Hospitality Group, explore the mind-gut connection, the importance of whole foods, and what to know about protein as we age. They separate evidence-based nutrition guidance from social media hype, discuss quality protein sources, including plant-based options, and share practical tips for spreading protein throughout the day. This episode breaks down how nutrition is not just about how much protein we eat, but the quality, variety, and overall pattern of what's on our plate. More about CCL here: https://www.ccl-hg.com.

In this week's episode, Kimberly Green, PhD, CEO of Sage Integrated Health, shares her fascinating story of 34 years of experience in eldercare. AgingIN CEO Susan Ryan sits down with Kimberly to discuss how a life-changing accident reshaped her perspective and how her work with Sage has fueled a vision for more holistic, home-like communities. She explores integrated health, food as medicine, staff education, and the power of creating environments where residents and staff can thrive. Kimberly also discusses the regulatory and cultural barriers that can make change difficult, and why transforming eldercare will require collaboration, new ideas, and policy change. More about Sage Integrated Health here: https://sageih.com/  To learn more about AgingIN education: https://aginginnovation.org/solutions/education/