Before the Landon building was built, KU's Center on Aging had programs scattered throughout the medical center's campus, making them less accessible to patients, Sack said. The new center was designed to be friendly to elderly patients with special needs. The parking lot has large spaces. Wide doors accommodate wheelchairs and walkers. Oversized examination rooms provide space for the family and friends that often accompany elderly patients.
Restrooms are numerous.
Even the chairs in the lobby were designed with bolstered seat cushions to make getting up easier. In addition to providing health care and social services to the elderly, the center's mission is to conduct research aimed at maintaining the physical independence of older people, said Randolph Nudo, a neuroscientist and the center's interim director. This is one of the things that makes this center unique. Center researchers already are studying close to 100 stroke patients in a laboratory equipped with machines to measure strength and balance. Researchers are trying to determine whether these patients benefit by receiving more days of physical therapy than most insurance plans have been willing to pay for.