The 2019 “Aging in America” conference hosted by the American Society on Aging (ASA), which took place in New Orleans from April 15-18th, is the largest multidisciplinary conference covering issues of aging and quality of life for older adults.
Among the presenters at the conference was Alisa Tirado Strayer, MPH-MSW dual degree student at UW and one of the recipients of the Latino Center for Health Student Travel Awards. Alisa co-presented her research with Wendy Lustbader, Affiliate Associate Professor at UW’s School of Social Work, and Dr. Sarah Jen, Assistant Professor at the School of Social Welfare at the University of Kansas, on The Aging Female Body and Late Life Sexuality. Her segment of the presentation covered the ways in which older women’s socialization, including constantly being told they are not sexual beings, affects their sexual health.
“It felt great to have a space to connect my education with an area that I care very much about, older women’s health, while bringing in nuances around race that often aren’t included in the conversation,” comments Alisa.
LCH Student Travel Awards are meant to promote academic scholarship at the University of Washington by providing financial support to emerging UW researchers, especially those working in the field of Latinx health.
“It was a very empowering and exciting experience, especially since public speaking is an area I have not had much opportunity to practice,” says Alisa. She also mentioned that “it was a great experience learning from other practitioners and knowledgeable people in the field, talking on such a wide range of issues that elders face in the U.S.”
However, Alisa did express some disappointment on the dearth of sessions specifically focusing on older Latinx health at this four-day conference. “Being [at this conference] taught me so much about my field, how to fit into the professional world, and how these spaces need to change [with regards to representation of Latinxs].”
Congratulations to Alisa for presenting! We at the Latino Center for Health are proud of her work and look forward to her bright future as she continues to address older Latinx health inequities.