Challenges in the delivery of nutrition services to hospital discharged older adults: the community connections demonstration project.

The objective of this project was to explore the effort necessary to transform the Older Americans Act Nutrition Program (OAANP) into core programs within an integrated health care delivery system that serves hospital-discharged older adults in order to assist them in reintegrating into the community. Six OAANPs in six states were funded and provided technical assistance to develop coalitions with hospitals and community organizations. Each demonstration site was unique and faced many challenges in reaching out to a hospitalized vulnerable population. This project also provided opportunities to try out new initiatives and examine their sustainability within the community.