Improving The Lives Of Lgbt Older Adults

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered (LGBT) older adults have unique and varying physical and mental health needs. Yet their experiences have often been ignored in gerontological and LGBT studies. In this important and timely volume, Orel and Fruhauf bring together crucial research from leading experts in the field to shed light on the unique challenges facing this oft-overlooked but growing population. This book uses a life course perspective to investigate how LGBT older adults have been shaped by social stigma and systematic discrimination. Although many of their experiences are similar to those of younger LGBT individuals, LGBT elders grew up in a particularly oppressive time, which continues to impact their well-being. However, these individuals have also developed coping mechanisms to adapt to stigma, discrimination, and the challenges of aging. Thus, the book explores not only the challenges and needs of this population but also their strengths and resilience. The intersection of cultural factors and personal attributes is highlighted.

Although largely invisible until very recently, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) older adults make up a significant (and growing) share of both the overall LGBT population and the larger 65+ population. While confronted with the same challenges that face all people as they age, LGBT elders also face an array of unique barriers and inequalities that can stand in the way of a healthy and rewarding later life. The additional challenges to successful aging faced by LGBT elders are gaining visibility with the aging of LGBT Baby Boomers, who are the first generation of LGBT people to have lived openly gay or transgender lives in large numbers. This report examines these additional challenges and how they make it harder for LGBT elders to achieve three key elements of successful aging: financial security, good health and health care, and social support and community engagement. The report also offers detailed recommendations for eliminating--or at least reducing--inequities and improving the lives, and life chances, of LGBT older Americans.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Aging brings together cutting-edge research, practical information, and innovative thinking regarding the characteristics and processes of aging among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals. Written by experts in the field, the book covers a range of subjects and provides a comprehensive knowledge base for practitioners, students, and researchers. Contributors address topics such as sexuality, relationships, legal issues, retirement planning, physical and mental health, substance abuse, community needs, gay and lesbian grandparents, and a model agency dedicated to delivering services to the senior LGBT population. Their writing takes a gay-affirmative approach that focuses on resilience, coping, and successful adaptation to aging and is sensitive to the importance of historical oppression in the lives of older members of sexual minorities. The authors also pay close attention to ethnic and cultural issues and identify where further research is needed. Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Aging is a groundbreaking collection of some of the most significant voices in this area of research today. Gerontologists and those who serve the LGBT community are in great need of the information contained in this singular and definitive resource.

Welcoming LGBT Residents is the first comprehensive guide to working with LGBT older adults in senior living settings. The LGBT older adult population represents one of the fastest-growing subpopulations within our aging society. Despite the increasing demand for LGBT-affirming services there is an absence of training books for care providers. This dual-purpose text is appropriate for training and as a guide to answer questions that may come up during daily tasks. It is based on the most recent research and includes stories and testimonials from LGBT older adults and providers in the field. Chapters include: LGBT-inclusive intake and conversations; Gender identity and expression; Memory care and LGBT people; Navigating family dynamics; Addressing conflict between residents; Staff opinions, beliefs, and training. This timely book will be of interest to professional care providers, from long-term care nurses and assisted living administrators to staff in retirement communities, as well as students in gerontology, health care administration, and social work courses.

At a time when lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals-often referred to under the umbrella acronym LGBT-are becoming more visible in society and more socially acknowledged, clinicians and researchers are faced with incomplete information about their health status. While LGBT populations often are combined as a single entity for research and advocacy purposes, each is a distinct population group with its own specific health needs. Furthermore, the experiences of LGBT individuals are not uniform and are shaped by factors of race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, geographical location, and age, any of which can have an effect on health-related concerns and needs. The Health of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender People assesses the state of science on the health status of LGBT populations, identifies research gaps and opportunities, and outlines a research agenda for the National Institute of Health. The report examines the health status of these populations in three life stages: childhood and adolescence, early/middle adulthood, and later adulthood. At each life stage, the committee studied mental health, physical health, risks and protective factors, health services, and contextual influences. To advance understanding of the health needs of all LGBT individuals, the report finds that researchers need more data about the demographics of these populations, improved methods for collecting and analyzing data, and an increased participation of sexual and gender minorities in research. The Health of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender People is a valuable resource for policymakers, federal agencies including the National Institute of Health (NIH), LGBT advocacy groups, clinicians, and service providers.

This groundbreaking resource presents a wealth of findings and perspectives previously unseen in the LGBT literature. Its focus on psychological, sociopolitical and care delivery issues affecting LGBT elders reveals both the nuanced interplay between diverse sources of identity and multiple sources of stigma and discrimination. Specific chapters highlight challenges and resiliencies impacting subpopulations (e.g., racial groups, veterans, immigrants), examine employment and advocacy issues, discuss later-life concerns in context and offer guidelines for relevant, ethical practice. Contributors represent a wide range of fields from psychiatry and gerontology to public health and public policy, reflecting the scope and needs of this diverse and complex population. Among the topics in the Handbook: Family relationships of older LGBT adults. The intersection of identities: race, age, sexuality and care network. Bisexuality: an invisible community among LGBT elders. Implications of the Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage. No money, no work and you're old. Disabilities among LGBT elders: responses of medicine, public health, rehabilitation and social work. Handbook of LGBT Elders is an essential reference for mental health professionals, psychologists and social workers who work with the LGBT community and the elderly, as well as researchers interested in the LGBT community and aging.

This is the only handbook for hospice and palliative care professionals looking to enhance their care delivery or their programs with LGBTQ-inclusive care. Anchored in the evidence, extensively referenced, and written in clear, easy-to-understand language, LGBTQ-Inclusive Hospice and Palliative Care provides clear, actionable strategies for hospice and palliative physicians, nurses, social workers, counselors, and chaplains.

This edited collection emphasizes the role of social work practice and research related to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) aging. It highlights LGBT aging from a gerontological social work perspective by incorporating key values of the profession such as cultural competence, dignity, strengths, and resilience of the population while it offers an important contribution to the body of knowledge to the interdisciplinary field of aging. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Gerontological Social Work.

This volume (and the ones that follow) have been in the works for some time. What finally emerges after many months of assiduous advertising, recruiting, editing, and organizing is a volume of intimate, nuanced, and heartfelt stories that reflect the wide diversity in the ways in which trans, non-binary, and Two-Spirit people have come to recognize, signify, embody, and celebrate their difference as their authentic selves. Moreover, with an increasing emphasis on the experiences of trans youth, elders constitute a routinely overlooked, disregarded, and/or silenced segment of the community. In response, this volume documents the myriad ways in which trans elders are coming to terms with the real-life challenges of aging, illness, and end of life decision-making. TRANScestors is planned as a series of edited volumes that address the issues of LGBTQ+ aging, illness, and end of life decision-making. Additional volumes include: Volume II: Generations of Change, Volume III: Generations of Pride, and Volume IV: Generations of Challenge.

This pioneering collection of ten ethnographically rich essays signals the emergence of a new paradigm of social analysis committed to understanding and analyzing social oppression in the context of sexuality and gender. The contributors, an interdisciplinary group of social scientists representing anthropology, sociology, public health, and psychology, illuminate the role of sexuality in producing and reproducing inequality, difference, and structural violence among a range of populations in various geographic, historical, and cultural arenas. In particular, the essays consider racial minorities including Hispanics, Koreans, and African Americans; discuss disabled people; examine issues including substance abuse, sexual coercion, and HIV/AIDS; and delve into other topics including religion and politics. Rather than emphasizing sexuality as an individual trait, the essays view it as a social phenomenon, focusing in particular on cultural meaning and real-world processes of inequality such as racism and homophobia. The authors address the complex and challenging question of how the research under discussion here can make a real contribution to the struggle for social justice.