As some readers have already discovered, The Times is discontinuing publication of The New Old Age blog. I join many of you in disappointment — but, to paraphrase Mark Twain, reports of its death have been exaggerated.
The blog, founded in 2008 by Jane Gross and anchored by me since 2009, has explored aging and caregiving from a variety of perspectives: medical decision-making, housing and long-term care, government policies, the latest geriatrics research, end-of-life choices, the personal rewards and headaches of caring for aging loved ones.
Our posts, and those of other contributors, served as springboards for what really distinguished The New Old Age: people who had walked the walk chimed in to agree or debate with the writer, offered information and suggestions (and the occasional jibe) to other readers, told their own stories. We have been a kind of online support group, one it has been a pleasure and an honor to facilitate.
The blog will remain online, a resource for readers looking for information on everything from assisted living to how often older adults should get colonoscopies (hint: not often). But I will not be adding new posts.
Instead, The New Old Age will appear as a column twice monthly at nytimes.com/health and frequently in the Science Times print section. I will be writing the column, continuing our coverage of these vital issues.
As The Times refocuses its resources for a new media age, we will lose some of the camaraderie and continuity that comes from gathering here several times a week.
But we’ll still be here. And if you follow me to nytimes.com/health or read The New Old Age in your newspaper (I will also post links on my Twitter account, @paula_span, and on my Facebook author page), the conversation will continue.
My first column, in Science Times on Jan. 20, will look at a provocative variation on advance directives. Stick with us and tell us what you think.