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Chinese-Canadian senior citizens are more likely to have
health problems and suffer from depression than other seniors, a new study has
found. And Chinese seniors in Vancouver had the most health problems and
depression of any of the seven cities surveyed.
The study of 2,272 Chinese 55 years of age and older
found that 96.1 per cent reported at least one health condition, as opposed to
81.7 per cent in the general senior population. The national average for Chinese
is 92.8 per cent.
Only 56.1 per cent of Vancouver's Chinese seniors
consider their health good to excellent, compared to 79.4 per cent in the
general population. The national average for Chinese seniors is 60.4 per cent.
Almost one-third (30.3 per cent) of the Chinese
Vancouverites surveyed reported they had suffered from some form of depression,
almost three times the average in non-Chinese (10 to 12 per cent). Across
Canada, 23.9 per cent of Chinese seniors reported some form of depression.
Despite their health problems, many Chinese seniors
did not make full use of the medical system. About 25 per cent don't have an
annual checkup and less than one per cent use mental health services like
psychiatrists and psychologists.
Study head Dr. Daniel Lai of the University of Calgary
thinks language barriers may make some Chinese seniors more reticent to use the
medical system.
"Almost half of them indicate language barrier is
an access issue," said Lai.
Lai thinks governments need to rethink the way they
deliver health care to minorities.
"If the users don't feel they have access to
services, then we are getting a really low grade in terms of our health
care," he said.
"We should be adjusting our system to accommodate
the users' needs. Very often some critics may say if we're doing it for one
ethnic group, many other ethnic groups will ask for resources. But I think it's
important for me to point out that as a multicultural society, every group has
the right to ask for resources for their own well-being, and to fight for their
rights."
Speaking through an interpreter, 68-year-old Shup Chow
says that having more medical professionals who speak Chinese would be a
"very, very big help" to older Chinese.
"The language barrier may be a pretty significant
issue for Chinese people who are more depressed," said Chow.
But going to see a psychiatrist or psychologist would
not be easy for Chinese seniors because of cultural tradition, said 63-year-old
Helen Wong.
"It is more natural for other seniors to go see
psychiatrists," she said. "They're more extroverted, more
outward-going.
"Chinese ... seldom would go to somebody, a
stranger, even if he's a professional and tell every detail."
One of the big problems facing Chinese seniors is
poverty. The study found that 54 per cent of the people in the study have an
income under $1,000 per month.
"People have a stereotype that all these
immigrants are coming over from Hong Kong and they're all very wealthy, and that
just isn't true," said Dr. Neena Chappell of the University of Victoria,
who also worked on the study.
"We know generally with all populations that low
income is associated with poor health."
Chinese-Canadians make up Canada's largest visible
minority. The 1996 census found that there were 860,000 Chinese-Canadians, but
the number is probably closer to a million (the results of the 2001 census will
be released later this year). There are an estimated 400,000 Chinese-Canadians
in British Columbia.
The study was conducted in Vancouver, Victoria,
Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto and Montreal.
It found that almost all Chinese seniors (97.5 per
cent) have used the Canadian medical system, but also found nearly two-thirds
(66.2 per cent) have tried traditional Chinese medicine.
If their health deteriorated, 40 per cent of Chinese
seniors would consider going into long-term care facilities. The report says an
"overwhelming majority" would "prefer to live in a care facility
specially tailored for Chinese residents and staffed mostly by Chinese
employees." - by John
Mackie Vancouver
Sun 17 Jan 2003
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