Elderly Health Care Must Aim at Minorities, Experts Say : Aging: Programs at senior-citizens’ centers reportedly don’t reach black, Hispanic and Asian communities.

In San Francisco, hundreds of elderly Chinese-Americans practice the graceful exercise of tai chi to keep fit.

In El Paso, Tex., health care providers are urging older Hispanics to fry tortillas in vegetable oil instead of lard.

To persuade minority elders to exercise, eat well and get regular checkups, health promotion programs must reflect the values and traditions of ethnic groups, leaders of the American Assn. of Retired Persons said.

Health programs at senior centers have attracted middle-class elders, but they don’t reach black, Hispanic and Asian communities, said C. Anne Harvey, director of programs for AARP.

Even small changes in exercise programs could make a difference in who participates, but providers must know their target audience.

“If you’re working with an African-American community in Detroit, I don’t think square dancing is going to cut it,” said Edna Kane-Williams, director of the National Eldercare Institute on Health Promotion, which is sponsored by AARP.

“We must think expansively when looking at a population,” she said.

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Harvey and Kane-Williams spoke recently at an “Issues in Aging” conference sponsored by Wayne State University’s Institute of Gerontology.

Nearly 90 social service professionals who work with older adults attended the second session of the four-day conference in Southfield.

Language barriers, religious differences, erroneous beliefs about health care and eating habits must be considered in designing a program for older people, according to Harvey.

One in San Francisco’s Chinatown managed to bridge the cultural gap, she said.

Organizers swapped meat and potatoes for traditional Chinese food of rice and vegetables in a senior citizens’ meals program.

Hundreds of elderly Chinese-Americans gather in city parks to follow exercise instructors in meditation-movement classes of Tai Chi.

In El Paso, community theater is used to communicate health care information to Hispanic elders. Health professionals also suggest changes in a fried food diet that would improve nutrition and keep weight down. Such changes help prevent the onset of diabetes and other diseases common among older Latinos.

More than 10% of the United States’ older population would benefit from culturally sensitive health programs, Harvey said.

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According to the 1990 U.S. Census, adults over 65 total about 31 million, or 12.5% of all Americans. Blacks make up the largest group of minority elders at 2.5 million.

Hispanic elders number about 1.1 million, and Asian-Pacific Islanders total about 455,000. Indians and other groups number about 114,000.

Revamping a program to reach a diversified population isn’t always easy, said Kay Gallagher, coordinator of Services to Aging in Oakland County, Mich.

In Pontiac, health care providers must pinpoint the primary caretakers of elderly adults in extended black families.

In Hazel Park, providers work with Appalachian whites who often use roots, herbs and other folk medicines to treat illnesses, Gallagher said.

In male-dominated Middle Eastern families, health professionals are often not able to communicate directly with women.

“You can’t take one program just anywhere; you have to tailor things,” Gallagher said.

“Marketing is really important.”