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Mexican
American (MA) elders have higher levels of functional impairment
associated with chronic conditions than Anglo elders but
lower use of home care services (HCS) than Anglo elders (data
from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, 2003, Medicarestats@cms.hhs.gov).
The aim of my developing program of research is to test efforts
to reduce health and use disparities, through partnerships
with the community.
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We have conducted community-based
participatory qualitative and pilot studies in the south
and west sides of Tucson (Crist, 2002, Public
Health Nursing, 19, 366; Crist & Escadón-Dominguez,
2003, Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 14, 276).
These preliminary studies have revealed factors that affect
use of HCS and that may be amenable to interventions, including:
- Expectations of familism
(“my daughter will
take care of me”),
- Management of the image
of the MA family (“we
take care of our own”),
- Perceived experiences of discrimination,
- Levels of confidence
in HCS (“I can trust
them to do as good a job as I would”),
- Caregiving burden, and
- Service awareness.
These are based on community-based participatory qualitative and pilot studies in the south and west sides of Tucson (Crist, 2002; Crist & Escandón-Dominguez, 2003; Crist, 2005).
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We need participation and collaboration at 3 levels:
- MA elders (55+)
- and their female MA family caregivers
We also welcome Community members and research collaborators to join our E.N.C.A.S.A.* Community Advisory Council (see photo), which meets quarterly to co-create research and analyze findings.
*E.N.C.A.S.A=Elder
and Caregiver Assistance
and Support At-home
Email
us at jcrist@nursing.arizona.edu
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