"Nadie Me Entiende" [No one understand me]: impacts of cultural and language barriers on social isolation and loneliness in Spanish-speaking older adults

Cultural and language barriers during the older stages of life can lead to an increased risk for social isolation and loneliness. Furthermore, Spanish-speaking adults are more likely to have poor access to care in Utah and in the rest of the United States, which decreases the likelihood of detection and treatment of mental disorders. There is little data on how these issues particularly affect Spanish-speaking older adults (65 or older) in Utah. Therefore, the main goal of this research is to examine how cultural and language barriers affect social isolation and loneliness in Spanish-speaking older adults in Salt Lake County, Utah. A secondary goal is to examine whether the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated these issues. Information was gathered from both existing literature and through interviewing community leaders. Additionally, this project investigated how social isolation and loneliness have been tackled in Spanish-speaking communities in Utah and in other areas of the United States; this will be useful in determining the impact of existing organizations that assist older Spanish-speaking adults, and it also highlights areas of need. Overall, community coordinators revealed that the Spanish-speaking older adult population in Utah is more likely to be socially isolated than other Hispanic age groups due to greater cultural and language barriers. Mental health and community outreach resources have improved over the last few years, but there is still much more to be done. This research is significant because Spanish is a widely spoken language in the Hispanic older adult community. The findings bring light to the challenges faced by many Spanish-speaking older individuals in Utah and resources that have been successful in helping them. This will promote advocacy for this community and prompt improvements to decrease cultural and language barriers.