CASE STUDY: An Older Immigrant Couple: Mr. and Mrs. Arahan Mr. and Mrs.
Arahan, an older couple in their seventies, have been living with their oldest daughter, her
husband of 15 years, and their two children, ages 12 and 14. They all live in a middle-income
neighborhood in a suburb of a metropolitan city. Mr. and Mrs. Arahan are both college
educated and worked full-time while they were in
their native country. In addition, Mr. Arahan, the only offspring of wealthy parents, inherited a
substantial amount of money and real estate. Their daughter came to the United States as a
registered nurse and met her husband, a drug company representative. The older couple
moved to the United States when their daughter became a U.S. citizen and petitioned them as
immigrants. Since
the couple was facing retirement, they welcomed the opportunity to come to the United States.
The Arahans found life in the United States different from that in their home country, but their
adjustment was not as difficult because both were healthy and spoke English fluently. Most of
their time was spent taking care of their two grandchildren and the house. As the grandchildren
grew older, the older
couple found that they had more spare time. The daughter and her husband advanced in
their careers and spent a great deal more time at their jobs. There were few family dinners
during the week. On weekends, the daughter, her husband, and their children socialized with
their own friends. The couple began to feel isolated and longed for a more active life. Mr. and
Mrs. Arahan began to think that perhaps they should return to the home country, where they still
had relatives and friends. However, political and economic issues would have made it difficult
for them to live there. Besides, they had become accustomed to the way of life in the United
States with all the modern
, conveniences and abundance of goods that were difficult to obtain in their country. However,
they also became concerned that they might not be able to tolerate the winter months and that
minor health problems might worsen as they aged. They wondered who would take care of them
if they became very frail and where they would live, knowing that their daughter had only
saved money
for their grandchildren's college education. They expressed their sentiments to their daughter,
who
became very concerned about how her parents were feeling. This older couple had been
attending church on a regular basis, but had never been active in other church-related activities.
The church bulletin announced the establishment of parish nursing with two retired registered
nurses as volunteers. The couple attended the first opening of the parish clinic. Here, they met
one of the registered nurses, who had a short discussion with them about the services offered.
The registered nurse had spent a great deal of her working years as a community health nurse.
She informed Mr. and Mrs. Arahan of her availability to help them resolve any health-related
issues. Reflective Questions 1. What strategies could be suggested for this older adult couple
to enhance their quality of life? 2. What
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