The Regional Older Adults Facility Mental Health Support Team (RAFT) in Northern Virginia has been providing critical support to older adults living with mental illness and dementia for more than a decade. The program was established to help individuals remain in their communities rather than being hospitalized or placed in long-term care facilities. With its mission to keep older adults healthy, safe, and thriving, RAFT has become a model for community-based mental health care.

RAFT was recently highlighted during the Age-Friendly Ecosystem Summit, an annual event hosted by the George Washington University Center for Aging, Health and Humanities in partnership with age-friendly communities across the region. The summit provides a platform to showcase innovative programs like RAFT, offering inspiration and practical guidance for other communities seeking solutions to the challenges of an aging population. By sharing best practices, the event helps expand access to age-friendly initiatives nationwide.

The RAFT program uses a multidisciplinary team approach that includes social workers, licensed counselors, psychiatrists, and psychiatric nurses. This comprehensive model ensures that individuals receive intensive support tailored to their needs. The team provides case management, individual and group therapy, medication management, and consultations with long-term care staff. With a 98% success rate in preventing re-hospitalizations, RAFT has demonstrated that effective community-based mental health services can significantly improve outcomes for older adults.

In addition to direct services, RAFT works closely with nursing homes and assisted living communities to enhance their ability to care for residents with complex mental health and behavioral needs. Many long-term care staff members lack training in this area, but RAFT addresses the gap through consultations, training sessions, and care coordination. This collaborative approach not only benefits individual residents but also strengthens the overall quality of care in these settings.

RAFT also operates a dementia support program, launched in its second year through grant funding. This program provides free, short-term support to caregivers and families across Northern Virginia. Services include dementia education, caregiver training, consultations, respite care of up to 30 days, and assistance with navigating benefits and resources. By offering these supports, RAFT helps reduce caregiver stress, promote resilience, and enable families to continue caring for loved ones at home.

For older adults and families in Northern Virginia, RAFT has become a vital lifeline. With its focus on individualized care, caregiver support, and community collaboration, the program demonstrates how local initiatives can improve quality of life and reduce unnecessary hospitalizations. To learn more about RAFT, visit www.raftnorthernvirginia.org. To stay connected with broader age-friendly initiatives, join the GW Center for Aging, Health and Humanities community by visiting our website or joining our Facebook group, Building Age-Friendly Ecosystems. If you found this helpful, don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel, Melissa B PhD, for more insights on dementia care and aging.