Developing a community advisory board to combat ageism: process and preliminary outcomes.

Abstract

Ageism - stereotyping, prejudice, and discrimination based on chronological age - is a highly prevalent yet underrecognized form of social discrimination with detrimental effects on healthy aging. Combating ageism is essential for creating an age-friendly society; however, there is no consensus on the optimal approach for doing so. In this manuscript, we posit that community-based participatory research holds promise for addressing and reframing community-level ageism, especially in underserved minoritized communities. To this end, we offer an implementable, adaptable process and model for building community-academic partnerships to combat ageism in diverse communities - using as an example the grassroots anti-ageist work of the University of Minnesota Center for Healthy Aging and Innovation's (CHAI's) Community Advisory Board (CAB). Here, we describe the formation and structure of the CHAI CAB, as well as the development, activities, and preliminary outcomes of its strategic initiative to create a community-led toolkit of resources for combating ageism in diverse cultural communities of the Twin Cities region of Minnesota. We believe our model can be useful for geriatric practitioners and educators to 1) uplift and empower diverse older adults in their communities; 2) promote health equity for underserved populations; and 3) provide rich community-based and experiential learning opportunities for future aging scholars and professionals.