A culturally sensitive approach to Indigenous older Sámi living with memory loss– disconnected from their environment and spirituality

Abstract

The aim of this article is to discuss attitudes to memory loss in old age among older Sámi people in the Arctic region of Norway. What preferences and lived experiences are expressed when older Sámi people need health and social care because of memory loss? According to the Sámi Act (§ 108), the Sámi Indigenous people in Norway have a legal right to receive equitable health and social services adapted to the Sámi language, traditional lifestyle and religious customs. However, standard services are offered that are adapted to the majority of clients in a homogenisation of needs and wishes, and older Sámi clients are treated in the same way regardless of their cultural background. Ethnographic interviews and participant observation illustrated as case studies. Older Sámis’ long-term connectedness to nature and spirituality makes them sensitive to the changes in the environment. Healthcare personnel enable older Sámi to feel connected to their environment and spirituality in old age, by facilitating culturally sensitive care. This study explores a need of culturally sensitive approach to health care, aiming to increase the understanding of the preferences and lived experiences of Indigenous older people with cognitive impairment.