August 2026 Issue | Volume 20, Number 08

A publication of the Univ. of Utah Center on Aging
phone: 801.213.4156 | email: aging@utah.edu
Newsletter Archives

Governor's WISE Initiative - Utah's 10-year plan on aging

This initiative is built upon four foundational pillars - Wealth, Independence, Security, and Engagement - reflecting the core needs of our aging community.  Utah is home to one of the fastest-growing older adult populations in the nation.  In late 2024 Governor Spencer J. Cox launched the WISE Initiative to ensure the Beehive State remains the best place in the country to age.  The strategic 10-year plan is designed to empower older Utahns to live healthy and independent lives, and to prepare our infrastructure for continuing demographic shifts. 

Link to the WISE Initiative: daas.utah.gov/utah-wise-initiative/

University of Utah Plays Key Role in Landmark XPRIZE Healthspan Competition

The University of Utah is helping lead one of the world's most ambitious healthy aging initiatives. The $101 million XPRIZE Healthspan competition has selected 20 finalist teams to advance into clinical trials focused on therapies that aim to restore muscle, cognitive, and immune function in adults ages 50 to 90, with the goal of extending healthy years of life. 

A critical part of this effort will be led by the University of Utah's Utah Data Coordinating Center (Utah DCC), which has been chosen to oversee trial and data management for the entire competition. The Utah DCC will independently analyze safety and efficacy data and apply consistent scientific standards across all finalist teams to determine whether the therapies deliver measurable results.

Dr. Alayne Markland, director of the University of Utah Center on Aging, was recognized as part of the University team participating in the recent XPRIZE Healthspan announcement and celebration. Her involvement highlights the Center on Aging's connection to a global initiative aimed at advancing evidence-based approaches to healthy aging. 

The competition's clinical phase will run from 2026 through 2029, with finalist teams testing innovative therapies designed to improve the health and independence of older adults. The University of Utah's role helps ensure that the scientific evaluation behind these groundbreaking interventions is rigorous, objective, and trustworthy. 

Read the full announcement: A New Chapter in Healthy Aging | University of Utah Health [healthcare.utah.edu]

This is especially notable given Dr. Markland's leadership in aging research and the University's growing role in shaping the future of healthy longevity.

Joshua S. Choi, MD, MS, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical Informatics at the University of Utah and an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine, Division of General Internal Medicine. His research focuses on patient-centered clinical decision support and electronic health record–integrated tools that make complex health information more understandable and actionable. Dr. Choi earned his medical degree from Saint Louis University School of Medicine, completed residency training in Internal Medicine at Kettering Medical Center, Ohio, and fellowship training in Clinical Informatics at the Regenstrief Institute and Indiana University. He later earned an MS in Biomedical Informatics from the University of Utah and joined the faculty in 2024. He also contributes to foundational computing standards through Ecma International, the standards organization responsible for ECMAScript, the specification underlying JavaScript, and he enjoys playing the violin, drawing, and programming.

Dr. Choi’s 2026 University of Utah Center on Aging Pilot Grant Award, “Preferences of Older Adults for Multimedia AI-Generated Whole-Patient Walkthroughs,” extends his informatics research to aging and multimorbidity. Older adults with multiple chronic conditions often must make sense of numerous diagnoses, medications, specialists, and self-management tasks, while existing patient materials remain fragmented across encounters and individual conditions. Using semi-structured interviews informed by the 4Ms framework, the study will examine what older adults and caregivers want from high-level explanations of overall health and how such information should be prioritized, organized, and presented. Participants will review text, infographic, and brief video-style prototypes generated from fictional patient information using artificial intelligence. Findings will guide development of patient-centered whole-patient walkthroughs designed to improve understanding, support decisions about what matters most, and help patients and caregivers navigate complex care in ways that complement communication with their clinicians.

University of Utah Health Among 14 US Health Systems Selected for New Age-Friendly Designation

The University of Utah Age-Friendly Collaborative is pleased to announce that in June 2026, University of Utah Health was among 14 health systems awarded Level 3 Age-Friendly Excellence in System-Wide Spread designation by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), reinforcing our health system’s national reputation for innovation and excellence in age-friendly care (see University of Utah Health Earns National Recognition for Excellence In Age-Friendly Care With New Level 3 Designation | University of Utah Health).  This Level 3 recognition builds upon University of Utah Health’s participation in the IHI’s Age-Friendly System-Wide Spread Collaborative from 2024-25 and recognizes the expansion of age-friendly 4Ms care from hospital to primary care clinic settings as well as effective age-friendly transitional care.  

Delirium in the Hospital: What Families Need to Know Podcast 

Dr. Roxanne Weiss, Hospitalist and Medical Director for the Hospital Elder Life Program (HELP) at University of Utah Health - discusses the difference between delirium and dementia, why families are often the first to notice delirium and what simple steps can help prevent it.  The Scope podcast is available here:

https://healthcare.utah.edu/the-scope/health-library/all/2026/08/delirium-hospital-what-families-need-know

2nd Annual Age-Friendly Health Systems Research and Symposium Day

The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) and UCSF will host the 2nd annual AFHS Research and Symposium Day on December 7th in Phoenix (see Home | IHI Forum). This all-day session will feature break-outs on timely age-friendly topics from policy, implementation, and research.  There is a poster submission process for the Symposium that is separate from the IHI Forum poster submissions.  Please email afhs@ihi.org if you are interested in having your poster displayed as part of the Symposium.

The statewide Kaleidoscope Creative Aging Festival is a month-long, state-wide festival promoting creativity for older adults that runs from August 22-September 19.

August 22 was an in-person event, and statewide events are scheduled through September 19. All events are free, but advance registration is required.

Registration is required in advance. For more information, please visit https://utahcreativeaging.org/.

The College of Nursing will be hosting monthly updates on their Aging In Utah Today series. Sponsored by the Hartford Center for Gerontological Nursing Excellence, each month will feature three short 15-minute presentations across three categories. Scan the QR Code below for all the details. 

4th Biennial Conference on Caregiving Research

Reaching New Heights: Elevating Caregiving Research, Policy, and Practice

September 23-25, 2026 | Salt Lake City, Utah

The Family Caregiving Collaborative at the University of Utah College of Nursing is proud to host the 4th Biennial Conference on Caregiving Research, Reaching New Heights: Elevating Caregiving Research, Policy, and Practice. Join experts in caregiving research, policy, and practice. 

Registration

University of Utah Health Nursing Poster Fair

The inaugural University of Utah Health Nursing Poster Fair, will be held in conjunction with Nursing Grand Rounds on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, in HSEB Alumni Hall (Room 2100). Additional details are included in this flyer.
 
Following the 8:00 AM Nursing Grand Rounds presentation, we will host a poster fair reception from 8:45–10:00 AM, providing an opportunity to showcase projects, exchange ideas, and learn from one another.
 
This nursing-focused poster fair creates an additional forum for our teams to share their work, complementing the multidisciplinary UUHC Poster Fair each April and expanding opportunities to present scholarships, exchange ideas, and elevate the visibility of nursing.

Please join the University of Utah, Division of Geriatrics and the Veteran Affairs Salt Lake City Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center for Geriatric Grand Rounds and Translational Grand Rounds on Tuesday mornings.

During the past month, the Utah Commission on Aging (UCOA) continued to advance implementation of the Utah Master Plan for Aging (MPA) while strengthening partnerships across aging services, health care, caregiving, rural communities, arts and culture, and public policy. Major activities included the Summer Quarterly Summit, continued development of the MPA outcomes dashboard, rural health outreach, creative aging initiatives, caregiver projects, and planning for legislative and partner activities. 

UCOA Summer 2026 Quarterly Summit

The Summer Quarterly Summit convened Commission members and statewide partners under the leadership of Chair Joel Macey. The meeting provided an opportunity to share organizational developments, identify opportunities for collaboration, and highlight projects demonstrating the Master Plan for Aging in action. 

Partner and Legislative Updates

Alzheimer’s Association: Update on additions to the Utah team and opportunities for continued collaboration.

Arts and Aging – Kaleidoscope 2026: Discussion of current creative aging activities and future programming. Kicks off August 22.

Lifetime Arts: Review of training funding and debrief from the Salt Lake City conference.

Davis County Market Nutrition Program: Update on efforts supporting nutrition and food access and recognition for their award.

W.I.S.E. Initiative: Progress report on activities supporting older Utahns.

Utah Caregiver Website: Update on development of the statewide caregiver information and resource platform.

Homecare & Hospice Association of Utah (HHAU): Debrief of June activities and discussion of the upcoming conference.

Legislative Older Adult Caucus: Continued exploration of establishing a legislative workgroup/caucus focused on older adult issues.

RHTP Funding Opportunities: Group discussion of potential funding opportunities and partnerships. To date, few have seen opportunities that apply. 

Master Plan for Aging – Moving from Planning to Action

UCOA continued its emphasis on translating the Master Plan for Aging into measurable projects and outcomes.

Adult Day Services: Neighborhood House provided an overview of adult day care and its role in supporting older adults and family caregivers.

Nature Rx Therapy: Review of study findings and opportunities related to nature-based interventions and healthy aging.

Caregiver Simulation: Briefing and preparation continued for an experiential simulation designed to increase understanding of the realities and challenges faced by family caregivers. 

MPA Dashboard

Continued work on dashboard development and measurement challenges. A College of Nursing PhD team of four students are engaged to help advance the project.

PhD Project Development: Individual and group meetings were held to clarify research needs, indicators, data sources, and potential project assignments.

IBIS and BRFSS: Briefings and discussions focused on identifying Utah public-health data that can support MPA measures and establish meaningful baselines.

Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute: Continued discussions regarding demographic, economic, and policy data that can strengthen MPA measurement and reporting. 

Advance Care Planning and End-of-Life Issues

UCOA continued exploring emerging issues surrounding advance care planning and end-of-life decision-making.

Continued conversations concerning death-with-dignity policy and practices, including review of approaches for funding registries in other states such as Massachusetts and Delaware.

Held more detailed discussions with UHIN regarding MyDirectives collaboration and opportunities associated with electronic advance care planning information.

Considered how these developments may relate to the MPA's Plan for Life objectives and broader efforts to improve access to advance care planning tools.

Analytics of the utahaging.org website show over 29,000 page visits to the Advance Care Planning site alone for the first six months of 2026.

Creative Aging in the West Summit 2026

Utah hosted the Creative Aging in the West Summit 2026 at the Utah State Library facility, bringing together regional partners to strengthen the role of arts and creative engagement in healthy aging.

Collaboration included the Utah Division of Arts and Museums and the Utah Creative Arts Coalition.

Utah served as host for representatives and partners from Nevada, Colorado, Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and Wyoming.

Discussions emphasized creative aging programming, professional development, cross-state collaboration, and strategies for expanding access to arts experiences for older adults.

Utah’s MPA is the only one in the nation to incorporate arts in aging in its platform.

Rural Health and the Master Plan for Aging

UCOA continued its partnership with the Rural Health Association of Utah (RHAU) to ensure that rural aging issues remain integrated into statewide planning.

Presented during the August RHAU Webinar Series on the Utah Master Plan for Aging and its potential impact on rural communities.

Highlighted rural issues including access to health care, workforce shortages, transportation, caregiving, technology, and aging in place.

Continued conversations with RHAU leadership regarding the upcoming conference and opportunities to expand the aging and rural health discussion including conversations with aging services leadership in Washington County. 

Partner Collaborations and Ongoing Initiatives

UCOA participated in or supported numerous statewide coalitions, workgroups, and partner initiatives during the reporting period, including:

W.I.S.E. Initiative monitoring feedback and anticipated roll out

Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (ADRD)

Utah Caregiving Roundtable

Utah Association of Area Agencies on Aging (U4A)

Living Well Coalition

Falls Prevention planning and September events

WINGS guardianship initiatives

Caregiver Simulation preparation for DAAS upcoming event

Parkinson’s Foundation meeting with Karen Courington

Brainstorming with Eric H from the Alzheimer’s Association and Joe H from AARP Utah regarding development of an Older Adult Legislative Caucus

Planning session participant for the 2027 Rocky Mountain Geriatrics Conference

These activities reinforce UCOA's role as a statewide convener and contributing partner connecting organizations and initiatives that individually address specific aging issues but collectively contribute to Utah's broader Master Plan for Aging. 

Upcoming Partner Events

Several significant aging-related events are scheduled for fall 2026:

4th Biennial Caregiving Research Conference – University of Utah: September 23–25

Falls Prevention Events: September 22

Huntsman World Senior Games Volunteer Activities – St. George: October 5–17

Rural Health Association of Utah Conference – St. George: November 4–5 

Summary

The mid-July through mid-August period reflected UCOA's continued transition from Master Plan development to implementation and measurement. Particular emphasis was placed on improving the MPA dashboard and data strategy, strengthening rural health partnerships, advancing caregiver resources, supporting creative aging, exploring advance care planning innovations, and building stronger legislative engagement around older adult issues.

Collectively, these efforts demonstrate UCOA's continuing role as a convener, catalyst, and coordinating organization for Utah's aging network—bringing state agencies, health systems, community organizations, researchers, advocates, and policymakers together around measurable improvements in the ability of Utahns to age successfully.

MTEC has released its FY26 Multi-Topic RPP: DoD-backed funding for military-relevant medical prototypes (devices, drugs, biologics, techniques, or knowledge products) across 15 focus areas. Proposals are due October 30, 2026. You may submit to more than one focus area, but each submission must address only one. All white papers will be submitted via the Applied Medical & Engineering Lab (AME Lab).

Full RPP: https://mtec-sc.org/solicitations/multitopic-26

Reach out to Nicole Frank, Jim McDonough and Parshva Bavishi on teaming opportunities/submission process/focus area questions. 

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Utah's RHTP Funding Opportunities

Major upcoming funding opportunity for teams focused on rural health, workforce development, health technologies, health systems innovation, and community-based interventions.

Link Here for Upcoming Funding Opportunities

NIH Portfolio & Priorities Toolkit: https://tinyurl.com/2tpkwpzm

NIH Highlighted Topics: https://grants.nih.gov/funding/find-a-fit-for-your-research/highlighted-topics

Utah Commission on Aging: Utah Commission on Aging - University of Utah

The bristlecone pine tree (Pinus longaeva) - the earth’s oldest inhabitant with a life span of almost 5,000 years - is found only in Utah and five other western states. Its extraordinary longevity and ability to adapt and survive in extremely harsh environmental conditions above 10,000 feet embodies the investigative spirit and mission of the Utah Center on Aging.