Few studies have been carried out that examine the effects aging has on the health of older LGBT individuals. This is a matter that warrants further research, for approximately half a million gay men and lesbians turn fifty each year. As the number of aging LGBT persons grows, so does the need for competent clinical care that addresses the unique health and psychosocial issues of this population. It has been shown that discrimination against LGBT persons exists in the medical setting. Additionally, the literature suggests that medical students do not receive sufficient training regarding sexual minorities. Educating primary care physicians, medical students and other health professionals on how to communicate more effectively with aging LGBT patients can lead to improved health outcomes. This is a goal of public health. The IRB-approved study described in this thesis aimed to provide the Allegheny County Area Agency on Aging (A.C.A.A.A.) with information about the health and psychosocial issues of older ( ≥ 50) LGBT individuals living in the Pittsburgh area. Over a two-month period in 2006, a comprehensive survey was dissemintated at a variety of locations frequented by LGBT persons. The survey included questions about demographics, quality of received health care, openess about sexual orientation with one’s primary care physician, end-of-life and legal issues, and questions that addressed pertinent LGBT health and psychosocial issues. Results of the survey indicated that the majority of the sample’s respondents (N=79) reported being in good health, receiving competent health care from primary care physicians, being open with their doctors about sexual orientation, and experiencing minimal discrimination from health care providers due to sexual orientation. These positive findings differ from the somewhat discouraging information presented in the literature review. Despite this, the survey results may inspire more rigorous studies to be carried out in the future that address the health and psychosocial issues of older LGBT persons. Further studies may also bring about positive changes in medical schools’ curricula, not to mention changes in public health policies that address the nations aging population as a whole.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:PITT/oai:PITTETD:etd-06152007-113932 |
| Date | 25 September 2007 |
| Creators | Baumgartner Jr., Thomas Carl |
| Contributors | Anthony Silvestre, PhD, Patricia Documet, MD, DrPH, Martha Ann Terry, PhD |
| Publisher | University of Pittsburgh |
| Source Sets | University of Pittsburgh |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://etd.library.pitt.edu/ETD/available/etd-06152007-113932/ |
| Rights | unrestricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to University of Pittsburgh or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
Page generated in 0.0206 seconds