North Carolina's emerging populations: The future is now

North Carolina is experiencing dramatic demographic changes, including the explosive growth of immigrant populations of older adults. Unfortunately, knowledge about the health and well being of many immigrant groups is limited, and few programs or strategies have been developed to address older adult immigrant needs. These underserved populations have received little attention in research, and consequently, service providers lack knowledge crucial to planning for their needs in the health and human services arena. This presentation will draw from The Future is Now: North Carolina's Emerging Populations, a pilot study designed to increase knowledge about the health of adult immigrants aged 50 and older, through a series of focus groups and key informant interviews. Funded by the Institute on Aging, Center for Aging and Diversity at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, this project employs a university-community partnership to expand the knowledge base on the health-related experiences and concerns of the state's Hmong, Mexican, and Eastern Slavic communities. This presentation will focus on strategies for working with older adult immigrants at risk for significant health disparities due to language and cultural barriers, isolation, poverty, and high prevalence of chronic disease. Additionally, we will identify and articulate strategies for the planning and delivery of services to immigrant populations, and define areas in need of more extensive research. The Future is Now is based on the North Carolina experience, but findings may be applicable to other states and communities. 2007-->