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This study was performed to evaluate the effectiveness of a hybrid, telephone-based cardiac rehabilitation (TBCR) program implemented early in the COVID-19 pandemic compared with in-person, center-based programming offered prior to the pandemic. The focus was on older adults’ engagement and outcomes. Matched groups of hybrid and in-person cardiac rehabilitation (CR) participants were created from existing data and compared using t-tests and repeated measures ANOVAs. Qualitative interviews were conducted with participating CR staff then transcribed, coded, and analyzed for key themes. There were significant differences in body mass index and weight from pre-to post-CR within both hybrid and in-person groups. Despite this, CR staff believed exercise adherence was reduced in the hybrid group when compared to those in the in-person program. In the future, TBCR should be considered as an adjunct to in-person CR. Reluctance to prescribe exercise needs to be addressed through CR staff training.

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As climate change proceeds at an unprecedented rate, concern for the natural environment has increased. The world's population aging also continues to rise at an unprecedented rate, giving greater attention to the implications of an older population. The two trends are linked through the fact that changes to the environment affect older adults, and older adults affect the environment. Sustainability is, therefore, an intergenerational phenomenon, and protecting resources today leaves a positive legacy and enhances quality of life for future generations. Older adults have much to share with younger generations about behaviors that promote sustainable living, yet few sustainability efforts are intergenerational in nature. As large numbers of people currently subsist without secure access to basic needs, ensuring equitable resource consumption for all generations is urgent and aligns with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Through exploring linkages between aging and sustainability, we identify intergenerational strategies to protect the environment and promote human rights and quality of life for older adults.

Fully immersive experiences (i.e., practica, internships, clinicals) with older adults are one successful strategy to reduce ageist beliefs among students, as long as the experiences are high quality and students are given an opportunity to reflect on their observations, feelings, and application of classroom knowledge. Representing a more intensive level of engagement than single-session interviews or multisession intergenerational activities, such experiences are not without challenges. Instructors are not present on-site continually (or at all) to observe what the student is seeing or doing, therefore providing limited opportunity to recognize and reframe situations that may reinforce the “othering” of older adults. Through creating carefully curated reflection prompts and assessment strategies (such as eportfolios), this presenter will discuss how instructors can ensure students completing practica, internships, and clinicals recognize the breadth and diversity of aging experiences, engage ethically and appropriately with older adults in non-ageist ways, and avoid reinforcing “othering” and ageism.