|
Note: Documents on this page or in this section may be in Adobe Acrobat PDF format. In order to read them, you require Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is downloadable free from Adobe.
This conference is now over, however, the documents produced by the conference are still available.
Date & Location:
Friday, October 17, 2003 (BY INVITATION ONLY)
Red Lion Hotel
1401 Arden Way
Sacramento, CA
Tel: 916.922.8041
Staged by:
the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC)
Tel: 1.800.600.9188
Sponsored by:
The California Endowment
Purposes
The gathering will have two primary purposes. First, it will help improve our knowledge about aging and assess health access and care for the aging among Southeast Asian Americans in California. This information will be particularly useful for The California Endowment (TCE) and its partners. We anticipate that participants and speakers at the gathering will raise issues such as housing, elderly care, healthcare, limited English proficiency, the availability of translators and interpreters, transportation, Medi-Cal, Medicaid, and others.
Second, through the gathering we will begin to identify models for effective practice, and "gaps" that remain to be filled in the field of aging services for Southeast Asian Americans in California.
Outcomes
Through this project, SEARAC, TCE, and their partners will determine whether a community needs assessment focused on Southeast Asian American aging is needed, and, if so, how to go about planning and carrying out such an assessment.
Second, through this project SEARAC and partners will catalyze and advance discussions with grassroots leaders about how best to organize communities for more appropriate and effective aging policies and services.
After the gathering, TCE, SEARAC, and partners may carry out follow-up activities that cannot be determined at this time. For example, they may begin a coordinated effort to help MAAs and FBOs advocate for improved elderly health services, they may produce a public report with findings drawn from the gathering, they may plan further collaborative community research projects, and/or they may focus educational efforts on multiethnic institutions and policymakers that serve Southeast Asian Americans. Partners should discuss anticipated follow-up before the gathering, so they will be able to refine the agenda appropriately, take useful notes, etc.
Proposed Planning Partners
Plans for the gathering will be refined by a "working group," whose members may also help to implement the project (e.g., as presenters) and/or plan for follow-up activities. The working group will include approximately ten members, including the following types of people (tentative list):
- TCE representative/s
- SEARAC representative (Executive Director KaYing Yang, with assistance from staff)
- United Laotian Community Development, Inc.
- Health Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program (HICAP)
- American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) Regional Representative
- Asian Community Center for Senior Services (Sacramento) Representative
- California State Aging Office Representative
- Federal Aging Administration Representative
- Medicare Administration Representative
- National Asian Pacific Center on Aging (NAPCA) Representative
- Southeast Asian American MAA and FBO Representative/s
Need for Project
California is home to the largest community of Southeast Asian Americans in the United States. According to the Census 2000, more than 705,328 Southeast Asians reside in California. The Census 2000 also indicates that there are 38,704 Southeast Asians who say they are 65 years or older. It is important to note that most Southeast Asians define elderly and seniors by their status in the community in addition to their age. For example, in the Hmong community, anyone who has grandchildren is considered an elder. Because many older people do not have birth certificates, their age is often not accurate. Furthermore, a great majority arrived in this country after having suffered years of warfare, oppression and torture, poverty and exposure to rare diseases, they are believed to have aged more than the average American. Due to these factors, it is estimated that the number of elders in the community is larger than that of the Census. Knowing this, most Southeast Asian elderly programs do not turn away people who are younger than 60 years old who seek aging services.
California also has the largest numbers of mutual assistance associations (MAAs) who provide vital services to the community. They number a total of 41. In SEARAC’s survey of 137 MAAs across the country, 89 of the MAAs said they provide elderly services, 76 provide health education and 25 provide mental health services. Of the 41 California-based MAAs, 23 provide elderly services, 19 provide health education, and 7 provide mental health services. It is clear that in almost every community there is a need for elderly services and health related issues. However, it is unknown whether these organizations have adequate resources to support their services. There are other senior programs in the mainstream community, but these programs have not focused their services on the special needs of the Southeast Asian American community.
Traditionally, children are responsible for the care of elders during their golden years. But as younger generations of Southeast Asians integrate and compete in the economic and social fabric of the U.S. they have less and less time at home to continue this obligation. As a result, the growing elderly community find themselves alone and isolated. The majority lived through the wars that destroyed their home country, and they continue to live the nightmares of their refugee experience. They now suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as well as other illnesses. A large majority suffers from chronic health problems such as diabetes, hypertension, and cancer. Unlike other American seniors, they do not have access to health insurance or health care. Nor do they have the financial freedom to engage in hobbies or travels that might renew their spirit. They do not understand the health care system. And the health care system must improve their understanding of this community. In the face of harsh national policies that take away benefits from immigrants, the devastating impact has been greatest on the Southeast Asian American community, particularly the elderly. The lack of culturally specific services and comprehensive needs assessment of this community is a barrier to designing an adequate plan that will proactively address the growing population.
SEARAC
SEARAC, founded in 1979, is the national organization working to advance the interests of Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese Americans through leadership development, capacity building, and community empowerment. SEARAC also has a long history of meeting planning, which includes a national series of community forums. In addition, SEARAC serves as a clearinghouse and disseminator of policy-relevant information and best practices related to Southeast Asian Americans. Our list of publications will soon include a revised edition of our well-received Southeast Asian American Mutual Assistance Association Directory and Southeast Asian American Self-Portrait: From Refugees to New Americans. The latter publication will present a comprehensive (although necessarily incomplete) overview of Southeast Asian American life since the communities were established after 1975, and best practice models tested in MAAs and partner organizations.
|
