Transforming Healthy Ageing: Insights from the Pioneers Leading the Academic Centre for Healthy Ageing

Welcome to this special interview with two of the three distinguished professors who have been appointed as Professorial Chairs for the newly established Academic Centre for Healthy Ageing (ACHA) at Barts Health NHS Trust and Queen Mary University of London.

Professor Adam Gordon, MBE, is an academic geriatrician and President of the British Geriatrics Society, whose work has significantly influenced national policy on healthcare delivery in care homes. Professor Liz Sampson is a leading expert in dementia and cognitive frailty, bringing her extensive clinical experience and research on the interaction between physical and mental health in older adults.

The Centre, launched with a generous £6.6 million donation from Barts Charity, aims to revolutionise the way health and care services support people as they age. Through a combination of research, education, training and active translation to real-world settings, ACHA will improve healthy ageing not only in north-east London but also beyond.

Together, these internationally renowned experts will help shape ACHA’s strategic initiatives and its vision for the future of healthy ageing.

What’s the strategic context in North-East London that led to the creation of ACHA?

North-East London truly represents a microcosm of the world. Here, we can engage with a diverse range of individuals from various cultures, ethnicities, and backgrounds, allowing us to gain valuable insights into the ageing process. It’s a unique opportunity that’s hard to find elsewhere in the UK. Unfortunately, we also know that residents in North-East London do not age as well as they should; they often face disability and health issues earlier in life compared to other areas of the capital. This presents a significant opportunity to learn from these challenges and make a meaningful impact on the quality of life for our older population in their later years.

Can you describe ACHA in a bit more detail, why it was established at Whipps Cross Hospital, and your ambition for the new initiative? What do you see as the big opportunities?

The Academic Centre for Healthy Ageing is an innovative collaboration involving the NHS, local authorities, neighbourhood care providers, third sector partners, and a university. It is designed to focus on the needs of the population we serve, fostering partnerships that enhance care and support.

The initiative was established at Whipps Cross Hospital as part of a broader redevelopment plan for the site. By creating an academic unit within the new hospital, Barts Trust is signalling its commitment to delivering world-class care and research specifically for older adults. This investment not only aims to benefit the local community but also positions us to conduct significant research with the potential for global impact.

The big opportunities with ACHA lie in our ability to harness the diverse expertise and resources of our partners. By addressing the unique challenges faced by older individuals in North-East London, we can develop tailored interventions that improve health outcomes and quality of life. Additionally, the collaboration allows for groundbreaking research that can inform best practice and innovations in geriatric care, ultimately benefiting communities far beyond our local area.

What motivated each of you to join the Academic Centre for Healthy Ageing, and how do you envision your specific role in contributing to its mission?

Joining ACHA represents a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for us as researchers. We’re excited by the strong support from Barts Charity, which has essentially redefined how clinical research can be conducted. ACHA fosters a collaborative environment that actively supports health and care services and clinicians to work directly with the individuals receiving this care.

At this stage in our careers, making a tangible difference in people’s lives is incredibly important. ACHA employs a unique research model that unites expertise in orthopaedics, musculoskeletal diseases, geriatric medicine, and mental health within a single centre. This multidisciplinary approach is groundbreaking and allows us to tackle the complexities of healthy ageing in a comprehensive way.

In our specific roles, we aim to leverage our combined knowledge and experience to drive impactful research that directly benefits the community. By collaborating closely with our partners, we hope to develop innovative solutions and interventions that address the needs of older adults, ultimately improving their health outcomes and quality of life.

Can you elaborate on the importance of a multidisciplinary approach in achieving ACHA’s goals?

Ageing is an inherently complex process, and to truly understand it and drive meaningful change, we must collaborate with a diverse array of professionals from across the health sector and beyond. Older individuals often present intricate health and care needs that require a holistic approach, rather than treating isolated issues in silos.

The ACHA model places the individual at the centre of our work, focusing on their overall well-being rather than just the specific problems they face. This means engaging with a wide range of experts, including nurses, allied health professionals like physiotherapists, speech therapists, pharmacists, and occupational therapists, as well as social care professionals. Additionally, we’ll incorporate the insights of data scientists, IT specialists, social scientists, and experts in the biology of ageing.

At Queen Mary University of London, our clinical research encompasses a broad spectrum of relevant specialties, including neurology, dementia, bone and joint health. This multidisciplinary approach not only enriches our understanding but also fosters innovative solutions that can significantly enhance the quality of life for older adults.

One of our key challenges will be to maintain a focused yet manageable scope as we establish ACHA. Balancing the diverse expertise and perspectives will be crucial in ensuring we address the multifaceted nature of ageing while delivering impactful research and interventions.

Are there any other centres in the UK pursuing similar goals? If so, what will make ACHA stand out as a unique centre of excellence?

While there are established centres of excellence for ageing across the UK, none focus on applied research in the way ACHA does, particularly with a strong community integration. This emphasis on real-world impact allows us to not only address the specific ageing challenges faced in North East London but also to share these insights with the wider country and beyond.

ACHA is unique in its commitment to embedding research within the community, which enables us to tailor our approach based on the lived experiences of local residents. By telling the story of ageing in North East London, we can highlight effective strategies and interventions that truly make a difference, setting us apart as a leader in promoting healthier ageing. This combination of community focus and applied research will allow us to drive significant advancements in how we understand and support the ageing process.

It’s truly inspiring that ACHA places people at the centre of its mission. How will you engage with the local community, and what opportunities and challenges do you foresee?

The diversity of our community is a powerful motivator for us. Engaging with local residents is essential; we must listen, learn, and remain humble in our approach. As academics, we recognise that we don’t have all the answers – often, we find we understand less than we thought! This diversity presents a fantastic opportunity to enrich our research, but it also carries the risk of excluding certain groups. We must be proactive in reaching out to as many individuals as possible.

We invite anyone interested in being part of this journey to get in touch with us at the email address below. Your insights and experiences are invaluable as we work to create a centre that truly reflects and serves our community.

 What do you see as the biggest challenges facing healthy ageing today, and what actions will ACHA or others need to take to address these issues?

Recent data indicates that the increase in life expectancy we’ve seen over the past 40 years is not only slowing but may even be reversing in some regions. This decline can be attributed to various factors, including unhealthy lifestyle choices in early and mid-life, austerity measures, the pandemic’s impact, and an overstretched health and social care system.

To tackle these challenges, we need to delve deeper into how early-life decisions influence ageing outcomes and how socioeconomic factors affect mid-life health. This understanding might prompt ACHA to engage more actively in public health and policy initiatives as we gain insights into the specific needs of the North-East London community. By addressing these root causes, we can work towards promoting healthier ageing for all.

Each of you clearly brings complementary expertise to healthy ageing. For you individually, what are the most pressing research questions in your field?

Our diverse areas of research truly enhance our collective efforts. One pressing question is how to maintain cognitive function and mental health, which are crucial for ageing well. Alongside this, we must explore how to prevent physical and musculoskeletal ageing and frailty. Muscle health is vital, not just for strength but also for metabolism, yet we still lack a comprehensive understanding of how nutrition and exercise can be optimised to preserve muscle health as people age.

Moreover, a key role of ACHA will be to ensure that individuals receive excellent care when they become unwell, start to experience frailty, or face mental health challenges like delirium and dementia. ACHA will function as a living lab, where we can develop and test the best models of care across hospitals, communities and care homes, ultimately improving outcomes for our population.

There is a long list of well-known challenges facing the health and care system in the UK. What implications might these have for ACHA’s work on healthy ageing?

Austerity and funding constraints within the NHS have led to some of the worst physical and mental health outcomes for older people in recent years. This has resulted in our clinical and care collaborators being stretched thin and overworked. It’s crucial for us to find ways to support these professionals without adding to their burdens. We believe that research is key to discovering more effective and efficient care methods, ultimately making things easier for staff while improving patient outcomes.

Workforce and training are critical components of ACHA’s mission. We have significant funding dedicated to this aspect, as we know that recruiting professionals to care for older people in NE London is challenging. By investing in research, training and education, we can attract top talent, provide them with the highest standards of training, and keep them motivated to work in the area long-term. This approach not only enhances the quality of care but also strengthens the workforce, addressing some of the systemic challenges we face.

How might care for the elderly change over the next 5-10 years, and what differences might we see from today?

Aligned with the recent Darzi review, the renewed emphasis on community care and supporting individuals in their own homes will drive a deeper integration of health and social care services. Achieving this will require significant changes in how we fund and organise social care, focusing on improving pay, conditions and career progression for those in long-term care. This shift will foster greater collaboration between health and social care sectors, leading to more effective research and improvements in service delivery.

Technology will play a crucial role in this transformation. By integrating data from various health and social care organisations, we can gain invaluable insights into patient journeys and resource allocation. Innovations like AI, machine learning, wearables, and practical robotics will be important, but ACHA must ensure that these technologies are user-friendly and centred around individual needs. We must prioritise the human aspects of care, as personal interaction remains essential. Loneliness is a significant driver of poor health outcomes, so we must be cautious not to assume that technology alone can solve these challenges. Face-to-face support will continue to be vital for fostering connection and well-being among the elderly.

 From the work that ACHA will undertake and your view of the future of elderly care, what do you see as the major opportunities for technology companies?

There are tremendous opportunities for technology companies to collaborate closely with service users, families and care providers to truly understand their needs. It’s essential that technology is designed with people in mind, rather than forcing individuals to adapt their lives around technology developed in isolation. Companies that engage directly with those living with frailty and cognitive impairment will gain a significant competitive advantage.

We are excited therefore by the planned Life Sciences Cluster in Whitechapel, adjacent to the Royal London Hospital – part of Barts Health NHS Trust – and Queen Mary University of London. The physical infrastructure will enable us to attract those companies who share our ambition of developing and deploying user-centred technologies to improve healthy ageing.

Ahead of then, at ACHA, we are eager to partner with providers and manufacturers who share our values and vision. By working together, we can harness these opportunities to transform care, ensuring that technology genuinely enhances the quality of life for older adults and adapts to the changes they experience as they age. This collaborative approach will be key to creating solutions that are effective, user-friendly, and truly beneficial for our communities.

We have already begun to explore collaborations, working with Barts Life Sciences and UCL Partners, amongst others and we want to significantly scale our collaborations as the Centre develops.

You can contact us at: bartshealth.acha@nhs.net

About the Authors

Adam is inaugural chair for Care of Older People at the QMUL/Baths Health Academic Centre for Healthy Ageing, leading on research into living with frailty, rehabilitation and long-term care.  He is a Consultant Geriatrician working at Whipps Cross Hospital.  He studied in Edinburgh and trained and completed doctoral studies in Nottingham where he went on to become Professor of Care of Older People and lead the Academic Unit for Injury, Recovery and Inflammation Sciences.  He has been a pioneer of research in long-term care, particularly care homes, working closely with the sector to improve care for an often-overlooked group of older people.  He is President of the British Geriatrics Society until November 2024 and was awarded an MBE for services to care of older people in the King’s Birthday Honours 2024. He tweets @adamgordon1978

Liz is an inaugural chair in the QMUL/Barts Health Academic Centre for Healthy Ageing , leading on mental health, dementia and delirium. She is a liaison psychiatrist for East London Foundation Trust. Liz leads work on delirium and acute hospital care for the QMUL national dementia policy unit (DeNPRU). She studied medicine at the University of Birmingham and gained her MD from the UCL Institute of Neurology. Liz is a member of the executive board of the European Delirium Association and vice-chair of the Faculty of Liaison Psychiatry Executive Committee.