Symposia
LGBQT+
Jason D. Flatt, Ph.D.
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Background: By 2030, there will be nearly six million sexual and gender minority (SGM) older adults aged 50 and older in the U.S. who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or intersex; this number will more than double by 2050. SGM older adults in urban settings have faced significant challenges over their life course, including experiences of discrimination and greater socioeconomic and health challenges that impact housing security.
Methods: By partnering with non-profit organizations in San Francisco and Los Angeles, CA, we recruited SGM older adults (n=263) eligible for low-income senior housing. A cross-sectional survey was conducted to explore mental health concerns, including previous diagnoses of depression, anxiety, PTSD and the Patient Health Questionnaire-2 (PHQ-2). We explored associations between social and health factors, diagnosis of mental health problems and the PHQ-2, adjusting for demographic characteristics (age, race/ethnicity, and educational attainment).
Results: The average age was 68.1 (SD=6.1), with 74% reporting male and 26% reporting female sex assigned at birth and 7% identifying a transgender/non-binary. Over 70% identified as gay/lesbian, 6% heterosexual, 5% asexual, 5% queer, and 3% another identity. Over 75% identified as White, 11% Black, 5% American Indian/Alaska Native, 7% Asian, and 12% Hispanic/Latino. The majority (45%) reported a 4-year college degree or higher and 11% with a high school degree or less. For health diagnoses, 47% reported having hypertension, 34% arthritis, 26% HIV/AIDS, 25% reported not eating healthy the previous day, and 13% reported diabetes. About a third rated their quality of life (QoL) as fair to poor and 48% reported feeling isolated from other LGBT people. In terms of mental health diagnoses, 40% reported a diagnosis of depression, 29% anxiety, and 17% PTSD. For PHQ-2, the mean score was 1.70 (SD=1.72), with 24% having a score of ≥3 (possible major depressive disorder). In terms of associations, we found that poor to fair QoL, not eating healthy the previous day, and feeling isolated from other LGBT people were associated (p< 0.05) with diagnoses of depression, anxiety, PTSD and PHQ-2 score ≥3.
Conclusion: Isolation from other LGBT people, limited access to healthy foods, and poor/fair QoL could be important areas to consider for SGM older adults experiencing mental health problems. Future research is needed to better understand the social and behavioral factors linked with the mental health of low-income SGM older adults.