Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

As a result of advances in treatment over the past 30 years, the number of older people living with HIV is growing. This is of particular concern for Indigenous populations in Canada, given continuing over representation in HIV diagnoses. While there has been an increase in research on aging with HIV within the general population, little is known about the experiences of older positive Indigenous peoples. Research was done in partnership with the Canadian Aboriginal AIDS Network (CAAN) and was conducted in July 2015 in Vancouver, British Columbia at CAAN's Wise Practices V conference. Participants were conference delegates, representing a sample of First Nations, Inuit and Métis people living with HIV. Participants ranged in age from 32 to 63 and had been positive for 5 to 29 years. This project utilized a community-based participatory research design, directed by community and informed by Indigenous knowledge's and methodologies. Data was collected through four sharing circles (two with women, one with men and one with service providers) and four individual interviews (n=34). Our preliminary findings reveal several dimensions of health which facilitate successful aging (SA) within this population: physical, emotional, spiritual, mental and social engagement. While the dimensions which an individual must embrace in order to achieve SA are intricately connected, the emphasis that one places on each dimension is subjectively determined. Participants recognized the interconnectedness of the dimensions and the importance of finding the right balance between each dimension in order to actualize SA. The goal of this project was to identify facilitators and individual strategies which enable SA within this population, in order to develop culturally mediated responses. Ideally, this knowledge can be used to help structure community and primary health services to promote SA with HIV in ways which are congruent with Indigenous culturally-defined notions of health.