Native American Elders

Native American Elders

Native American Elders are having a rougher time surviving and getting the health care they need in America today. Thy meet the every day challenges of living on reservations that do not have adequate jobs to support the Native American families. There is high unemployment, drug abuse, as well as alcohol abuse. The families live together in one family housing units together with multiple generations.

Native American Elders are considered the wisdom keepers. They are the wise ones with wisdom and knowledge to teach the younger generations to live right, and respect the land they live on, and all living things whether it is the trees, the flowers, the water, the air, or other human beings. They give back what they take from the earth. They are also the first to help anyone in need that goes without food, water, or shelter. They are willing to help anyone in need no matter what the the problem is, or what color of their skin. They are living in poverty, usually do not have transportation, living in poor housing conditions in cold and wet weather conditions. “ Job opportunities are virtually non-existent. Winters are bitter cold and visits from health care workers are sporadic at best. At the end of each month, children and Elders often go hungry. Many homes lack central heat, running water, electricity, and telephones.” N.A.A. (2006).

Native American Elders rather stay home close to their tribes and families rather than moving to a new location far away from their homes. Their family members do not have the transportation to come visit them, and they know they will be separated, even till death if they leave the reservations. Most of the Native American’s believe in keeping their elders in the community to take care of their own and respect their elders wishes. “The vast majority of frail Indian elders live at home, cared for by family members. These families are in need of respite services, to support them in their care giving role. As tribes develop their health systems as sovereign nations, they are increasingly looking for models of care which are consistent with the desires of their elders and which cohere with their unique cultures. This most often means care that is based in the home. There is a cultural imperative to keep elders at home, in the community. Several tribes have developed adult day care programs to address this need; such programs are currently functioning at Zuni Pueblo, Isleta Pueblo and on the Navajo Nation. Many have also developed family caregiver respite programs. Some of the traditional ways are changing, however, as the impact of non-Indian culture becomes more prevalent. The rise of elder abuse and the need for tribal elder protection codes is an indication of these changes.” Office of Indian Affairs (2011).

Most children do move off the reservations so they can support their families and leave the grandchildren with the elders to take care of their young and raise them in the Native American traditions.

The Native American elders feel they have been forgotten again by the American Government. First their land was taken from them since America was discovered, and never paid, or promised what they had agreed into in the treaties.

“ Elders are again the forgotten people when it comes to overall health care that has been promised to our Native Americans. The Indian Health Service is charged by the government to provide health care to the American Indian. When this (law) was enacted, longterm care or nursing home care was not considered as a prime need. Traditionally, the American Indian people have held, and still hold, their elders in very high esteem.” Smith, T. (1993).

Medicaid pays for their health care, but there are very few hospitals, or nursing homes on the reservations. There is only 30 nursing facilities in the whole united states that populate the Native American Elderly population. Some of these are not filled with Native Americans, but outsiders for the most part. There are 530 tribes and only 285 live on reservations across the United States. The tribes are all are different and have their own traditions, rituals, beliefs, and cultural values. They try to work in harmony with one another, and will help each other out to survive.

Native American’s feel they are misunderstood, and probably have been always been dismissed when they have tried to relate to mainstream Americans. They would feel safer on their own reservations than in the mainstream communities. Native American Health care is also paid through profits of the Casino’s they build for their own tribal government to serve their own population. They are not governed by the states but their own Tribal Councils. They only use the funds in crisis situations, so their funds are limited for health care needs.

Native American Elders were not abused in the past, but because of the children blending in with the mainstream populations it is becoming a problem. They are starting to have the same problems as other American’s being taken advantage through financial abuse when children will try to persuade them to sign contracts or documents giving them rights to their homes, or taking their social security benefits if they have them. They also will be abused physically, and emotionally. They blame this on the main stream American society because they teach their children to be violent, and be abusive. They also blame it on the alcohol, and substance abuse. Most Native American elders are abused by their children. “ Researchers have found that poverty is a leading risk factor for elder abuse in native communities. Adult children are most likely to be the perpetrators of abuse. Spouses, other relatives, and grandchildren are also likely to be the perpetrators of abuse.3 Some tribal social service providers have estimated that close to 80% of those abusing native elders are immediate family members and that 10% of the abusers are extended family members.” White, H. (2004).

Since there is not enough nursing facilities, or and group homes, it is a large number indicating they are abused by their own families. They do have some activity centers, or daily day care programs in some areas, but not all of them.

Native American Elder’s are not up to date with the mainstream America because they live on the reservations in their own communities, and do not read newspapers, or watch television. They also do not use telephones, and rely on family members through conversation to pass down what is necessary for them to know. They have a hard time adjusting to the outside world, and this is one of the reasons they do not feel right moving to a nursing home outside of a reservation. They would be experiencing cultural shock, and not used to the ways of living outside of their tribal culture.

Native American’s depend on each other to survive. They do not believe in interfering in other peoples lives, and allowing them to live uniquely as their own. Native American’s believe we are all related. That we all affect one another. They depend on their families to take care of them as the age and get older. They do not believe in others taking care of them.

Native American’s health at the age of 45 is the same as someone at the age of 65 in other populations. They have higher rates of heart disease, and other illnesses dieing earlier than other groups in our population. They usually do not make it to the age of 65 to qualify for the benefits of those in the mainstream population due to the fact that they are living in such a high poverty rate compared to other populations.

Native American populations also have a higher rate of suicides, and alcoholic related deaths. Suicide is higher than any other population. Most social workers are advised to establish rapport and trust with the Native American Elders. They are advised to have a personal-centered approach in helping the individual Native American elder than grouping them together. Native American elders look to the social worker for alternatives and suggestions to help them in a crisis. They do not like to share private information, and feel it is disrespectful for an outsider to dig in their personal lives. Many of the hardships that Native Americans face in the health care need stem from a long history of the American Government neglecting the care and needs of the Native American People. They were once rich in their life before people came to America and took their lively hood, and land from them. They didn't have diseases, or health problems until they were introduced to many diseases from other cultures. “ Another example of the interactions of poverty, ethnicity, and policy involves the dramatic rise in rates of diabetes among Native American populations. Tribal peoples were stripped of their lands and forcibly resettled on reservations, which today have some of the highest rates of unemployment in the United States.” Personal Barriers To Diabetes Care (2001).

They respected the ways of their people and the land. They have always gotten the short end of the stick from the death of their people as their populations died over the generations, the poverty that was imposed on them by the government not keeping their treaties, and trying to survive in a world that has dismissed them forgetting them leaving them in almost third world lifestyle.