This capstone project presents an evidence-based proposal to Age-Friendly New York City (NYC) to include occupational therapy (OT) involvement in the Age-Friendly Working Groups. Age-Friendly NYC’s goal is to create a more inclusive city that is sensitive to the needs of older New Yorkers. Currently, working groups with topics of specific focus are convened to develop actionable goals for Age-Friendly NYC to implement. Background and evidence for age-friendly initiatives demonstrate the need to include input from older adults in the community, be multi-disciplinary and address a number of factors. There is evidence to demonstrate that occupational therapists (OTs) possess the knowledge, skills, and person-environment-occupation-performance (PEOP) models of practice that provide the link between the target population of older adults, their environment, and their occupational participation. By including OT in future working groups, Age-Friendly NYC will have access to the unique occupational perspective of OT. The addition of this perspective will enhance and expand the ideas, problems, solutions, and strategies identified by the working groups, with a focus on occupational participation. This proposal addresses the Centennial Vision’s goal of OT being widely recognized, evidence-based, and meeting society’s occupational needs. The proposal was presented to the Age-Friendly team at Age-Friendly NYC, self-reflection highlights the transformative experience of this project.
