2. Let’s start with the basics…
What does LGBT stand for?
• Lesbian
• Gay
• Bisexual
• Transgender
3. Sometimes you see LGBTQIA…???
• Queer/Questioning
• Intersex
• Asexual
• Ally
* Transvestite and Transsexual
are obsolete terms
4. The 1960s were pivotal for various social movements, including African
American Civil Rights and Gay Rights. After the Stonewall Riots on
June 28, 1969, the gay rights movement really gained momentum.
5. BREAKING NEWS! ON JUNE 26, 2015, THE
SUPREME COURT LEGALIZES GAY
MARRIAGE NATIONWIDE
https://www.google.com/search?q=gay+marriage+photos&espv=2&biw=1366&bih=667&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=MsRVbrEDYHRsAW22oH4Cw&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAg&dpr=1#i
mgrc=iVfM2Ccx5gmFtM%3A
6. Now that gay marriage has been legalized in all 50
states, that means NO MORE DISCRIMINATION,
RIGHT???
8. 2014 SURVEY BY WLEN
Top 10 concerns as LGBT elders age:
1. Staying Independent
2. Loss of Partner
3. Financial Stability
4. Isolation and Loneliness
5. Going to a Nursing Home
6. Declining Health
7. Affordable Housing
8. Health Insurance Coverage
9. Not Being able to drive
10.Needing help with personal
care
9. STATISTICS
• In a 2014 Gallup poll, 3.6% of respondents identified as LGBT
• recently released Gallup poll revealed that only 1.9% of people age 65
and over identified as LGBT as opposed to 2.6% of people between the
ages of 50-64.
• LGBT baby boomers now reaching retirement age are the first “out”
generation of older adults in the nation’s history. By 2030, the number of
LGBT older adults will likely double.
• Research suggests that LGBT persons are more likely to
rely on friends, often referred to as their family of choice, rather than
biological family.
• LGBT older adults are more likely to live alone and less likely to have
children than older heterosexuals.
• 9 million Americans – roughly the population of New Jersey – currently
identify as LGBTQ.
10. STATISTICS Cont’d
• In 2009, nearly 50% of Senior Centers in NY state said that LGBT
Seniors would not be welcome at area S.C.’s if their orientation was
known
• The American Association of Physicians for Human Rights states that
67% of doctors and medical students have reported that LGBT patients
receive substandard care
• There appears to be a DOMINO EFFECT:
1. Employment discrimination = limited employer based insurance
2. Discrimination by health care providers = less access to quality
care
3. Lack of education to care providers = lack of culturally competent
care
4. As a result, healthcare-avoidant behaviors prevail in LGBT
communities
5. Health disparities + economic insecurity = devastating effects on
LGBT older adults!!!
11. • Older lesbian women are more likely to keep their sexual identity
either wholly or at least partially closeted for fear of discrimination
and abuse
• Recent Gallup polls have shown:
• LGBT people are have a higher rate of not being medically
insured (17.6% as compared to 13.2% of non-LGBT)
• Only 29% report being financially secure, as compared to 39%
of non-LGBT reporters
• That LGBT women are more likely to lack a personal doctor
than non-LGBT women
• LGBT women also report lower rates of physical well being
STATISTICS Cont’d
13. • Never assume!!!!
– there are not LGBT people where you work!
– Terms like “married” or “divorced” automatically mean
in the “traditional” sense
• Is your agency’s paperwork inclusive or
exclusive?
• LOSSES
• Once someone come out, that’s it
• Create an opening for your clients to talk
about who is important in their lives
14. • Gay men are not always comfortable with female
workers providing personal care.
– Male health aides also may not be comfortable
providing personal care to gay men
• In fact, anxieties surrounding the intimacy of
touch during personal care has been repeatedly
flagged with LGBT when considering their
concerns related to aging
• Many LGBT would not consider going to a
nursing facility unless it were just for LGBT; they
are not comfortable with heterosexual facilities
or even single sex facilities
15. WORKING WITH TRANS PEOPLE
• Always remember to be very sensitive to the
needs and feelings of Trans people
• Do not assume that a trans person is
automatically gay. They can be gay,
straight and bisexual.
• NEVER ask a transgender person if they
have had “the operation.”
• Ask what name and pronoun they prefer
used when addressing them (he/she/they)
and use it, whether in their presence or not
• MAINTAIN CONFIDENTIALITY!
16. • Several respondents in a survey of
Trans people in England showed,
shockingly, that they planned to commit
suicide before ever getting to a point of
old age and dependency.
• Violence is an ever-present danger to
Transgender people.
– Bullying/harassment
– discrimination
– Physical violence
– Death
– Suicide
– Even higher risk of violence to Trans
women of color
17. TRANSGENDER PERCENTAGES
Taken from a survey in England in
2007
‒ have experienced harassment
in public
‒ admitted to not going out in
public d/t fears for their safety
‒ experienced harassment while
at work
‒ decided not to transition for
fear of losing their jobs
‒ that did transition were forced
to change jobs
‒ changed house d/t family
breakdown
72%
21%
29%
41%
23%
28%
18. SO WHAT DO WE DO?
• We start by educating ourselves and our
professional workplace
• Eliminate heteronormativity
• Take a Biographical Approach when Interviewing
• More research needs to be done to address
identified concerns with the goal being to ensure
access to medical care and services that LGBT
might otherwise avoid
• Consider more clinics/NHs/homecare agencies
that only cater to LGBT
