Reflections from First Session: The Health of Aging Americans: New Perspectives on Health Disparities and Social Inequities Research
The Missing Boxes
When you fill out your census form, do you feel your ethnic group or race is missing from the standard checklist? Have you ever considered who is really in that “Non-Hispanic White” category? Florence Dallo led a relevant discussion on the “missing” category of Arab-Americans, a group that has grown from around 660,000 in 1980, to over 2 million in 2007. Without specific data on Arab-Americans, variations in health disparities for this group are lost preventing meaningful public health interventions for Arab-Americans.
In case you are wondering, the Non-Hispanic white category includes Europeans, North Africans and populations from the Middle East.
Linking Aging and Health in Americans
No one will dispute the growth in the “senior” population in the United States. The “baby boomers” are aging, people are living longer and these seniors are living with often multiple chronic diseases. The 2050 Census projects the over 65 population to account for 87% of the country’s population – a substantial increase. As these huge shifts in demographics are taking place, we are facing shortages in primary health care workers and geriatricians who are able to care seniors. The presenter of this section, Nina Parikh, said there are approximately 7500 geriatricians currently in the United States, a % decrease from 2000.
Parikh spoke about interventions at senior health centers in New York City to address diabetes and depression care. There are many questions that arose: Can senior centers make a difference? Are senior centers a viable alternative for traditional health care centers for health promotion and senior self care management programs? Are these centers cost effective? Are they band-aids? We’ll have to pay close attention to care for seniors in the United States and the disparities affecting these populations.
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