
Background We propose a holistic view of interrelated frailties: cognitive decline, physical frailty, depression and anxiety, social isolation and poor sleep quality, which are a major burden to older adults and social and health care systems. Early detection and intervention are crucial in sustaining active and healthy ageing (AHA) and slowing or reversing further decline. Aims and Relevance The main aim of my-AHA is to reduce frailty risk by improving physical activity and cognitive function, psychological state, social resources, nutrition, sleep and overall well-being. It will empower older citizens to better manage their own health, resulting in healthcare cost savings. my-AHA will use state-of-the-art analytical concepts to provide new ways of health monitoring and disease prevention through individualized profiling and personalized recommendations, feedback and support. Approach An ICT-based platform will detect defined risks in the frailty domains early and accurately via non-stigmatising embedded sensors and data readily available in the daily living environment of older adults. When risk is detected, my-AHA will provide targeted ICT-based interventions with a scientific evidence base of efficacy, including vetted offerings from established providers of medical and AHA support. These interventions will follow an integrated approach to motivate users to participate in exercise, cognitively stimulating games and social networking to achieve long-term behavioural change, sustained by continued end user engagement with my-AHA. Scale and Sustainability The proposed platform provides numerous incentives to engage diverse stakeholders, constituting a sustainable ecosystem with empowered end users and reliable standardised interfaces for solutions providers, which will be ready for larger scale deployment at project end. The ultimate aim is to deliver significant innovation in the area of AHA by cooperation with European health care organizations, SMEs, NGOs.
The overall goal of the PREPARED project is to develop an operational ethics and integrity framework, which safeguards key ethical values, supports a rapid and effective research response to crises and improves overall pandemic preparedness. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen outlined plans to cope with "an era of pandemics" by developing "Europe-wide fast-reaction system designed to respond more quickly to emerging medical threats". Fast reaction systems, including accelerated research, are likely to face significant ethics and integrity challenges. The PREPARED project will create an international network of research funders (private and public), researchers, policy makers, publishers and citizens (a) to identify, analyse and validate the emergent research ethics and integrity challenges in the context of sudden, unexpected and global crisis, (b) to facilitate bottom-up, solution-focused, participatory dialogue, (c) to develop a values-based framework for research ethics and integrity in a global crisis which supports rapid and effective decision-making whilst maintaining scientific reliability and avoiding short-cuts in the protection of research participants, (d) to propose policy options at the EU level and tailored support for relevant stakeholders in the form of operational guidelines and short complements to existing codes and (e) to achieve influential strategic engagement through high-level synergy building and the provision of engaging training material to ensure uptake of the project's outputs so as to improve overall preparedness for global crises. Given that this is a Coordination and Support Action, the high-level consortium consists to 47% of research institutions (given that this is a CSA) and to 53% of organisations which can significantly contribute to and then leverage results (e.g. UNESCO, EDCTP, RIS).