What is NICOLA

Life expectancy is rising in Northern Ireland. It is predicted that 1 in 4 children born here today will celebrate their 100th birthday.

While this trend is good news, by 2048 almost half of the population will be aged over 50 years, thus posing many challenges for our society and policy makers. For example: how can we best maintain and maximise independence and the health and wellbeing of older people?, how do we organise and fund the delivery of care services for older people and make adequate pension provision? and what are the consequences for the labour market and employment with an increasing population of people reaching the conventional retirement age?

In 2012, NICOLA was set up to - explore why and how certain social, economic and biological factors are changing the lives of older people - to understand how health, lifestyle, financial circumstances and wellbeing change with age - to understand what it is like to grow older in Ireland. Our motto is…….“Understanding today for a healthier tomorrow ...”

NICOLA is an invaluable resource for understanding what it means to be an older person in Northern Ireland.

The wealth of information collected will help:

¨  Provide a rich data source for researchers across various disciplines in Queen's University Belfast and facilitate national and international research collaborations

¨  Shape health and social care polices and other aspects of policy aimed at improving the health and wellbeing of older people

-   Address issues related to social inclusion by giving the over 50's population a voice

¨  Form the basis of future age related research projects

¨  Change the way we live for the better!

Through NICOLA, we aim to understand the health needs and status of older people, the contributions that older people are making to society, the biological and/or environmental components that assist in successful ageing and the economic needs and status of older people.

In the words of NICOLA’s former Principal Investigator, Professor Ian Young -

“NICOLA will help us change the way we live for the better and those participating in the study will leave a tangible legacy for future generations"