[Report] Building health literacy for age-friendly health care in rural areas

Executive Summary

Supporting healthy ageing is crucial for small rural communities. The Indigo 4Ms in the Community project aimed to raise awareness of the Indigo 4Ms tool for healthy ageing and to bring older people and local community organisations together to develop resources and strategies for its use.

Led by the local neighbourhood house, community members and stakeholders in four townships across northeast Victoria came together through a collective impact approach.

• Community meetings were held with residents, representatives of local organisations, and a university research partner to learn about the Indigo 4Ms Framework and conversation tools, local health and wellbeing needs, and to map community assets.
• The community groups created a vision and shared agenda, setting priority actions to be implemented.
• Communities developed their own versions of the tool, with all sites agreeing to adapt it to focus on everyday health and wellbeing, renaming it ‘An age-friendly guide to ageing well.’
• Resources and initiatives were developed and promoted collaboratively across communities to help people incorporate the guide into their daily routines.

READ FULL REPORT AND DOWNLOAD Indigo 4Ms tool for healthy ageing at the bottom of this page.

Findings

The project evaluated the impact of ‘An age-friendly guide to ageing well’ (the guide) on health literacy and the community’s role in supporting healthy ageing.

Overall, the findings were broadly positive, particularly in sites where existing organisational

structures and partnerships were strong.

• The guide improved participants’ ability to understand and engage with health information, and most found it easy to read and use.
• The guide helped older people prepare for medical appointments by clarifying their concerns, boosting their confidence, and enhancing their sense of control during discussions with health professionals.
• Many participants shared the guide with family and friends, and some became advocates within their communities, encouraging their peers to use it.
• Community organisations, especially Neighbourhood Houses, generally regarded the project as aligned with their mission and incorporated it into their existing programs.
• The project enhanced collaborations among health, allied health, and community services, resulting in meaningful practice changes.
• In one town, the 4Ms guide has become embedded in community programs and medical practice, with the local health service planning to extend it to service delivery.
• Organisations experiencing financial and staffing issues found it hard to stay committed to the full rollout of the guide.

Recommendations

Supporting health literacy

• The ‘Age-Friendly Guide to Ageing Well’ is ideal for older people. The aim should be to gradually expand its use.

Training health professionals

• Health and medical stakeholders responded favourably to older people’s use of the guide during consultations, suggesting there is potential to integrate it into medical and allied health education and professional development programs.

Strengthening organisational capacity

• Rural community organisations work with limited budgets and high demands. Having dedicated local champions and clear governance structures genuinely makes a difference.
• In future implementations, the local host organisation at each site should receive independent funding for a designated lead person and administrative costs.
• Any continuation or expansion should allow extra time to collaborate with community organisations to agree on the purpose of the work, each organisation’s contribution, and to regularly assess ongoing capacity.

Longer-term evaluation

• A follow-up longitudinal study would provide a clearer understanding of the guide’s lasting impact on rural communities and its role in promoting the health and wellbeing of older people.