This first of its kind partnership between Meath County Council, Age Friendly Ireland, the GAA and ExWell aims to boost the health and wellbeing of older people
The medically led exercise programme for older people, ExWell, has been rolled out across Meath this week in collaboration with Meath County Council and Age Friendly Ireland, the national organisation delivering the Government’s vision of an Age Friendly Ireland. Access to the programme is by referral from a health care professional, and details are at exwell.ie/join-us.
The ExWell programme offers structured, medically led exercise programmes in community settings for people with diverse chronic illnesses on referral from health care professionals. The social enterprise was established in 2019 by Dr Noel McCaffrey to help people living with chronic illness, especially older adults, through evidence-based and community-based clinical exercise rehabilitation.
Whilst this programme is successfully running in 12 counties — Dublin, Kildare, Wicklow, Carlow, Kilkenny, Waterford, Cork, Offaly, Laois, Westmeath, Galway and Sligo — Meath’s pilot programme, which was officially launched at St. Patrick’s GAA Club, Stamullen, is the first county where it is a collaboration between the Local Authority, Age Friendly Ireland, the GAA and ExWell.
Speaking about her experience participating in the ExWell programme, Margaret Murphy, retired nurse, aged 67 years, said: “When ExWell came to Navan, I decided to give it a try and asked my GP for a referral. I found that some of the previous rehabilitation that I tried focused too much on my hip alone. What I find so beneficial with ExWell is that the programme treats the ‘whole person.’ Now, I no longer rely on walking sticks, the rollator has been put away in the shed, and I experience very little pain. I cannot believe the change.”
Dr Noel McCaffrey, founder and CEO of ExWell Medical, said: “Through this partnership, there is a shared vision to promote programmes that enable mainly older people to live more active and healthy lives as they age. The continued work of the programme fosters trust with our older participants, creating accessible spaces that make it easier for older people to stay active in their local communities. Our mission is to bring ExWell to every community in Ireland, making it accessible to everyone who would benefit from participating.”
Dr Noel McCaffrey, founder and CEO of ExWell Medical / Kieran Kehoe, Chief Executive of Meath County Council
Speaking at the launch, Kieran Kehoe, Chief Executive of Meath County Council said: “The ExWell programme is innovative, evidence-based, and community-centred and has supported over 450 older people in Meath with chronic conditions across the four ExWell centres. What makes this pilot in Meath truly unique is that it is the first county to deliver the programme through a collaborative partnership between the Local Authority, Age Friendly Ireland, the GAA, and ExWell. This integrated approach has allowed us to create a model that can be replicated throughout Ireland, helping us to build communities where people of all ages, especially older adults, can thrive in good health.”
Those wishing to learn more about ageing well in Ireland should contact their local Age Friendly Programme via their local council or visit agefriendlyireland.ie or exwell.ie.
