Symposia
LGBQT+
Carey Candrian, Ph.D.
Univerity of Colorado School of Medicine
Denver, Colorado
Background
Healthy People 2020 identified older sexual and gender minority (SGM) individuals as a priority health population. There is accumulating evidence of health disparities among SGM older adults, making these individuals an at-risk population for end-of-life care. As a result, it is essential to advocate for health equity for these individuals when accessing end of life services like palliative and hospice care. Through a community-based participatory approach and in-depth interviews with older SGM adults (age 58-84), we examined the barriers older SGM adults face when accessing end of life care and identified opportunities to improve the overall care experience.
Aims
The overarching aims of this project are to 1) identify barriers faced by SGM older adults face when accessing end of life care, and 2) identify ways in which end of life care practices and services can better meet the needs of SGM older adults in order to provide a high quality and inclusive care experience.
Methods
Methodologies included the development of a 10-person SGM community advisory board (CAB) and the analysis of 30 qualitative in-depth interviews with SGM older adults (n=30). Interviews were analyzed using critical discourse analysis.
Results
Results demonstrated the feasibility of having CAB members be equitable partners in the research process. In addition, results from the qualitative interviews revealed several themes: increased loneliness, fear of finding affirming clinicians, fear of seeking care, disenfranchised grief, discrimination, and fear of not having their wishes be followed when accessing hospice.
Conclusion/Discussion
Data from this pilot project elucidated the need to increase awareness among health care providers about the importance of creating affirming environments to support older SGM adults and those who care for them around end of life.