title: "Nobody ever asked me before": understanding life experiences of African American elders.
abstract: With the unprecedented growth in the African American elderly population, there exists an urgent need to prepare nurses to deliver culturally competent care. The purpose of this study was to increase the knowledge available about the cultural heritage, worldviews, and life experiences of African American elders. Reminiscence interviews were conducted with African American elders living in a medium-sized northeast urban community. Data were analyzed using Spiegelberg's phenomenological Method. The following themes emerged: (a) nobody ever asked me before, (b) stories of discrimination, (c) coping with discrimination, (d) the hurt of discrimination, and (e) self-discoveries. Nurses, through the use of reminiscence, can gain insight into the cultural heritage, worldviews, and life experiences of African American elders and improve their ability to deliver culturally competent care to this population.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nursing, University of Connecticut, Storrs, USA. jms821@aol.com
authors.forename: Juliette
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shellman
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D001741:Black or African American / Q000208:ethnology*; D000368:Aged / Q000523:psychology*; D000786:Anger; D001294:Attitude to Health / Q000208:ethnology; D005190:Family / Q000208:ethnology; D005260:Female; D006117:Grief; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008519:Medicine, Traditional; D009511:New England; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D011203:Poverty / Q000208:ethnology; D011287:Prejudice; D036301:Qualitative Research; D011788:Quality of Life; D011822:Race Relations; D012649:Self Concept; D029181:Spirituality; D016746:Transcultural Nursing; D014505:Urban Population