When Don Green turned 65, he didnâÂÂt pack up his office at Kansas University and head for the golf course.

Green, now 70, still teaches engineering courses at KU. HeâÂÂs part of a Douglas County work force that is older than the state average, according to a new report.

âÂÂIt basically comes down to I enjoy what IâÂÂm doing,â Green said. âÂÂMy health has held up. KUâÂÂs been a good place for me.âÂÂ

About 44 percent of Douglas County men ages 65 to 69 still work at least part time, the study said, compared to a statewide average of 37 percent. Twenty-nine percent of Douglas County women still work, compared to 25 percent statewide.

The data are part of ElderCount 2002, a report recently released by the Center on Aging at the KU Medical Center that includes demographic, economic, health, disability and nursing home data for all 105 counties.

The report, funded by the Kansas Health Foundation, was the brainchild of state Sen. and Insurance Commissioner-elect Sandy Praeger, R-Lawrence, who noted that there was more information available about Kansas children than there was about seniors.

âÂÂWe did this with the Legislature in mind, but itâÂÂs really for anybody who wants to better understand the situation of older adults in Kansas,â said Mercedes Bern-Klug, ElderCount director.

Douglas County seniors also are better off financially than seniors in other parts of the state. The median household income for ages 65 to 74 is $37,994, about $6,400 above the state median. For Douglas County residents over 75, the median income is $28,172, about $6,000 above the state number.

And local seniors are less likely to live in poverty. About 3 percent of Douglas County men live below the federal poverty line, compared to 6 percent in the rest of the state. The poverty figures for women are 11 percent in Douglas County and 13 percent in the rest of the state.

KU connection

Bern-Klug attributed the high work-force participation among older adults to KU employees.

âÂÂAcademics might enjoy working or choose to continue working, even if itâÂÂs part time,â she said.

The economic advantage for Douglas County seniors also might be tied to the university, though she said seniors in cities, including Lawrence, generally had higher incomes than their rural counterparts.

Jessie Ann Lusher, executive director of Douglas County Senior Services, said she could see the urban-rural split even within Douglas County.

âÂÂWhen you look at median household income, that has to be reconciled with the fact that Lawrence is skewing the numbers,â she said. âÂÂEudora and Baldwin is where youâÂÂd find the lowest income.âÂÂ

Other statistics

There were 7,937 people in Douglas County over the age of 65, according to the 2000 Census.

Among the other Douglas County data:

⢠Men here over 75 are more likely to break a hip than the state average. Women are less likely.

⢠Eight percent of Douglas CountyâÂÂs residents are over 65. The state average is 13 percent.

⢠Douglas County seniors are slightly less likely to live in nursing homes than their counterparts in the rest of the state.

Statewide, senior advocates say the data prove the need for funding in-home services and community living options to keep seniors out of nursing homes. Lusher noted that in Douglas County, 35 percent of men and 44 percent of women over 65 reported some type of disability.

âÂÂWhen you see cuts at the state level and the percentage of disabled people in Douglas County, thatâÂÂs frightening,â Lusher said.

Rosemary Chapin, professor in KUâÂÂs School of Social Welfare, said the Legislature should find ways to reduce the percentage of older adults in nursing homes. Statewide, 5 percent of seniors are in nursing homes.

âÂÂKansas still institutionalizes older adults at rates above the national average,â she said. âÂÂKansas is making a great amount of progress in creating a more balanced system, but weâÂÂre going to lose that progress if we allow the budget woes to cut into our funding.âÂÂ