Contact: Kevin Kavanaugh
Director of Public Affairs
(773) 478-6613
kkavanaugh@nursinghome.org

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 29, 2003

Illinois Council on Long Term Care Completes Groundbreaking Research on Multi-Cultural Issues in Nursing Homes

Researchers Present Results at National Alzheimer’s Disease
Education Conference

(CHICAGO) – The Illinois Council on Long Term Care, an association of 220 Illinois nursing homes, has just completed a first-of-its-kind research study examining multi-cultural resident care issues in long-term care facilities. The results were released for the first time at two presentations for the National Alzheimer’s Disease Education Conference held in Chicago on July 21-23.

The Illinois Council’s study involved in-depth interviews with nurses who work at ten nursing homes that serve multi-ethnic residents, with representation from both the City of Chicago and its surrounding suburbs. This study sample reflects the growing trend of nursing homes admitting an increasing number of persons from foreign backgrounds, many who have difficulties in speaking English.

"Our nation’s population is becoming increasingly multi-cultural, and health care settings are reflecting this change," states Susan Gardiner, director of clinical services for the Illinois Council on Long Term Care who served as a researcher for this study. "Staff members face many challenges in providing care to persons from different cultures, whose needs may be surprisingly different from those of the typical American citizen. Through our research, we wanted to learn about culturally sensitive caregiving issues and discover a variety of new and innovative best practices."

Among the caregiving areas that were addressed the Illinois Council’s research study:

  • Staffing for Ethnic Diversity

  • Overcoming Language Barriers

  • Addressing Non-Verbal Communication

  • Focusing on Unique Dietary Needs

  • Including Non-Traditional Methods for Healing in Care Plans

  • Recognizing Medication Issues from an Ethnic Perspective

  • Integrating Spiritual Traditions with Nursing Care

  • Tapping into Ethnic Community Resources

  • Planning Culturally Appropriate End-of-Life Care

  • Understanding Decision-Making in a Cultural Context

  • Discovering Beliefs Regarding Symptoms and Illnesses That Go
    Beyond the Western Medical Model

  • Understanding Current Behaviors Through Analysis of Past Life Experiences

Statistics from the Illinois Department of Public Health reveal that the demographics at Illinois nursing homes have been changing, supporting the theoretical framework for the Illinois Council’s study. During the last five years, the number of Caucasian nursing home residents has decreased each year, while the numbers of the department’s other measured populations – Black, Hispanic, Asian, and Indian – have increased on a yearly basis. The state predicts that this pattern towards diversification will continue in the future.

Additionally, the report The Metro Chicago Immigrant Fact Book, published by the Institute for Metropolitan Affairs at Roosevelt University, indicates that 1.4 million immigrants live in metro Chicago, representing nearly 18 percent of the region’s population. During the 1990’s, the number of immigrants in the region grew by a record 537,000 individuals. For the first time, there are now more immigrants in the suburbs of Chicago than in the city itself. These changes in demographics are similar to those taking place in communities across the United States.

"Cultural diversity is becoming an important issue for health care settings in all parts of the country, including urban, suburban and rural facilities," states Kevin Kavanaugh, director of public affairs for the Illinois Council, and researcher for this study. "Organizations such as the Alzheimer’s Association and the American Society on Aging have increasingly focused their mission on developing programs that serve diverse populations. Our research study is the first of its kind to involve interviews with nurses who address these cultural challenges on a daily basis."

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The Illinois Council on Long Term Care is a professional association representing 220 nursing homes that employ 26,000 caregivers who serve more than 37,000 residents. More information on long-term care issues is available at the Illinois Council’s website www.nursinghome.org.