Native American elders' health status, risk factors and access to care

This study describes the health status of a national sample of 15,802 Native American elders, representing 298 tribes, and factors correlating with health status. Based on the model created by the National Resource Center for American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Elders, the University of Alaska, this study describes Native American elders' demographics (age, gender, income, education, obesity), caregiving status, level of functioning (chronic diseases, ADLs); environmental factors (level of support, access to health care, and level of rurality), and their correlation with physical and mental health status (overall health, depression, and happiness and calmness). The study is guided by Stress Process theory, which suggests that Temporal (elders' characteristics) and Spatial (characteristics of the environment) Contexts moderate outcomes (physical and mental health). This study examines data collected through The National Resource Center for Native American Aging (NRCNAA), Identifying Our Needs: A Survey of Elders IV; the cross-sectional survey was based on the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Local tribal aging program staff across the country conducted the surveys using a standard protocol, as described in Interviewing Elders, A Brief Guide for Identifying Our Needs, created and distributed by NRCNAA. NRCNAA taff provided technical assistance to local data collection efforts. The sample's elders were on average (68.52, SD=8.73) years old; 59% were female; 51% were single; and 69% had an income less than $20,000. Thirty-nine percent were caregivers. The presentation concludes with the model created from the elders' responses and stress process theory.