No abstract

This chapter was developed with the financial support of the Centre de recherche et d'éxpertise en gérontologie sociale and the Centre de santé et de service sociaux Cavendish-Affilié universitaire.

Research on racialized older immigrants does not fully acknowledge the interplay between the life course experiences of diverse populations and the structural conditions that shape these experiences. Our research team has developed the intersectional life course perspective to enhance researchers’ capacity to take account of the cumulative effects of structural discrimination as people experience it throughout the life course, the meanings that people attribute to those experiences, and the implications these have on later life. Here we propose an innovative methodological approach that combines life story narrative and photovoice methods in order to operationalize the intersectional life course. We piloted this approach in a study of the everyday stories of aging among diverse immigrant older adults in two distinct Canadian provinces with the goals of enhancing capacity to account for both context and story and engaging with participants and stakeholders from multiple sectors in order to influence change.

Research points to a higher risk for social isolation and loneliness among new immigrant and refugee older adults. Our article draws from a research project that explored the everyday stories of ageing among 19 diverse immigrant older adults in Canada. To capture their experiences of loneliness and social isolation, we use four illustrative cases derived from a structural approach to life-story narrative. To these we apply the intersectional lifecourse analytical lens to examine how life events, timing and structural forces shape our participants’ experiences of social isolation and loneliness. We further explore the global and linked lives of our participants as well as the categories of difference that influence their experiences along the continua of loneliness to belonging, isolation to connection. Finally, we discuss how an understanding of sources of domination and expressions of agency and resistance to these forces might lead us to solutions.

The objectives of this study were to elicit Canadian health professionals' views on the barriers to identifying and treating late-life depression in primary care settings and on the solutions felt to be most important and feasible to implement. A consensus development process was used to generate, rank, and discuss solutions. Twenty-three health professionals participated in the consensus process. Results were analysed using quantitative and qualitative methods. Participants generated 12 solutions. One solution, developing mechanisms to increase family physicians' awareness of resources, was highly ranked for importance and feasibility by most participants. Another solution, providing family physicians with direct mental health support, was highly ranked as important but not as feasible by most participants. Deliberations emphasized the importance of case specific, as needed support based on the principles of shared care. The results suggest that practitioners highly value collaborative care but question the feasibility of implementing these principles in current Canadian primary care contexts.