Hispanic senior citizens are living in nursing homes in ever-increasing numbers, but they face a gap in their quality of care compared to white residents, according to new research from Brown University. The study found that Hispanic elderly are more likely than whites to live in nursing homes of poor quality. These residences are often faced with structural problems, staffing issues and financial trouble. The research follows up and expands upon a landmark 2007 study suggesting that blacks are more likely than whites to live in poor-quality nursing homes.
The report is the first full-scale analysis of its kind to attempt to look broadly at Hispanics in nursing homes—what kind of nursing homes they live in and how care at those facilities compares to nursing homes which care mostly for white elderly people. Unfortunately, the data revealed a sharp disparity in care.
The findings, in part, reflect a departure from prior patterns of elder care among Hispanic families in the United States. Traditionally, the group has used formal long-term care services less frequently than any other U.S. ethnic group. They had also been less likely than white or black residents to live in nursing homes. In Hispanic households, elder care has traditionally been handled by adults at home, but acculturation and financial issues have forced a growing number of Hispanic adults into work and outside the home, leaving no one to care for the elderly.
As a result, the loss of home caregivers is occurring even as the growth of the elderly Hispanic population rises dramatically. The authors of the report estimate that more than 5 percent of the current Hispanic population is elderly, a number expected to quadruple in the next 10 years. The number should rise to 4.5 million in 2010.
The study found that the overall use of nursing homes has declined since 1985, but the racial/ethnic mix of the national population of nursing home residents has shifted. From 2000 to 2005—the period of data used in the study—the percent of Hispanic residents increased from 5 percent to 6.4 percent, but the percentage of non-Hispanic white residents dipped from just under 83 percent to 79.4 percent.
Nursing home residents are coming increasingly from the lower end of the socio-economic scale, lacking resources for better quality care in assisted living facilities or elsewhere.
However, the impact of substandard nursing home care is a complex issue. Residents admitted to nursing homes have often already endured hospitalizations or a health issue that required expensive, high-level care. Once admitted, the individual is then often caught in a spiral of long-term lower quality of life, multiple episodes of poor health and ongoing chronic conditions without a way out.
Berman & Riedel, LLP is a San Diego based elder abuse and neglect law firm. To speak with a highly experienced and knowledgeable elder abuse attorney, call Berman & Riedel, LLP today at (858) 350-8855. Our attorneys will happily provide you and your family with an initial free consultation to discuss with you any questions or concerns you may have regarding the care an elderly loved one is receiving in a California nursing home or other type of California elder care facility. To learn more about the firm’s elder abuse and neglect law practice, visit www.preventelderabuse.com.
