Hispanic Americans are unsure that assisted living communities and other kinds of senior care providers can meet their needs, according to a new survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
Just 18% of Hispanics age 40 and older are “extremely or very confident” that assisted living communities can take their cultural needs into account, the study found. That number didn’t change much with other kinds of care, either. Only 16% of older Hispanic adults are very confident that nursing homes can meet their cultural needs, and just 20% feel the same about local home health aides.
Part of the reason for that apprehension might lie in operators having problems talking or relating to their Latino residents.
A little under half of those surveyed have had difficulty communicating with a health care provider due to a cultural (47%) or language barrier (44%), according to the study. Of those who have experienced a cultural or language barrier in the health care system, 67% said it resulted in stress or delays in getting care, and 51% said it took more time and effort to overcome those barriers.
Hispanic Americans accounted for 5.5% of all nursing home residents in the U.S. in the first quarter of 2016, according to government data noted by the Associated Press. Overall, Hispanic Americans make up about 8% of the nation’s 65 or older population.
For the study, researchers surveyed 1,341 adults 40 years old and older between March 2 and March 29.
Written by Tim Regan
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