QUESTION
What are the efforts to provide culturally appropriate food and disaggregate data for Asian American communities?
1:35:56
·
3 min
Associate Commissioner Anya Herasme outlines efforts to address dietary needs and disaggregate data for Asian American communities in NYC's aging programs.
- Client input plays a crucial role in menu planning and service provision.
- Home-delivered meals and older adult centers offer options like plant-based meals at least once a week.
- Advisory councils, consisting of older adults, provide feedback to ensure menus are culturally appropriate and meet diverse dietary needs.
- The conversation highlights the importance of disaggregating data for Asian American communities to ensure accessibility to culturally appropriate food.
Shekar Krishnan
1:35:56
Look, I think that and as you're getting from my colleagues too, This is a very, very urgent issue and a serious one in need of of addressing.
1:36:05
And it and it doesn't necessarily just fall on you all, but goes back prior administrations as well on a number of points.
1:36:11
I just have one question, but just 22 quick things to to reiterate.
1:36:14
1 is Council of a Brewers pound a point about housing court.
1:36:19
I have been having spent many years there.
1:36:22
I know how many seniors are facing eviction are evicted simply because they don't have access to language accessible legal services.
1:36:32
And the right to counsel is not being implemented in the way that it should be to ensure they have access to counsel, especially if they're required to go to court first to get a lawyer for I've represented seniors in these situations.
1:36:45
It's it's one way to ensure they're not gonna get legal services to make it so difficult for them to access.
1:36:50
But the question I had is specifically about language access and culturally appropriate services.
1:36:55
That's a vital issue that is not being addressed.
1:36:58
By the agencies in terms of language access, in particular, and resources for seniors.
1:37:04
That also translates to getting better data.
1:37:06
And chair.
1:37:07
I'd be like to ask some questions about it.
1:37:08
And I'd like to know when it comes to the Asian American communities in particular or not monolithic communities, There has not been a real effort by city government to disaggregate data when it comes to our communities.
1:37:19
And where that plays out in this context is across Asian American communities, we all have different dietary restrictions, whether it's vegetarianism, whether it's halal food or certain types of food, But the bottom line is making sure it's culturally appropriate and accessible and healthy for seniors in particular who are eating it.
1:37:37
What effort is being made to disaggregate data for API communities and understand the different dietary needs?
1:37:44
And make sure that each of the different Asian American communities gets access to the culturally appropriate food that they need.
Anya Herasme
1:37:53
So regarding the data, I think that's a wonderful point in something that we can take back and discuss more.
1:37:58
Regarding the dietary needs and of the that we at least our New York City aging providers provide.
1:38:04
So we always client input is so important to to all of our programs, and we that's something we require that.
1:38:09
Both our older adult centers, our norks, and our home delivered meals programs do.
1:38:14
So basic I mean, with home delivered meals, they have options between menus, and and vegetarian is actually something that we require all of our providers to do at least once a week.
1:38:23
Sorry.
1:38:24
Not vegetarian plant based.
1:38:25
There's a difference.
1:38:26
So So but we at all the older build centers, they have at least annually input or I'm sorry.
1:38:34
For menu planning twice a year because we do menus twice a year that is required on something that's part of our standards, but also mentioned earlier, they have advisory councils, and so that is made up of older adults of that program.
1:38:45
So their role is really to take information from the larger group and bring it back the staff so that they can make sure that the menus are meeting the needs of older adults, whether that's more vegetarian meals or it's, you know, changing the menu to to be more culturally competent maybe less salt.
1:39:00
I mean, what or not salt.
1:39:01
It's a bad example.
1:39:02
But, you know, but but our meals are very healthy.
1:39:04
They follow all of the dietary guidelines of the city, the state, there's a lot of restrictions on what they can serve to ensure that it is a healthy meal that we're serving at all of our pro
Shekar Krishnan
1:39:16
I just conclude by just saying, you know, it's it's important to because of the lack of this aggregated data for API communities, even if the intent is there and the programs are there, you're not necessarily gonna be reaching the individuals themselves who have specific dietary preference is.
1:39:31
So really giving thought to how with the lack of that data, you are able to make sure that the programs up here translate into the popular culturally appropriate on the ground.
Anya Herasme
1:39:40
Absolutely.
1:39:40
Thank
Shekar Krishnan
1:39:40
you.
1:39:40
Thank you, cheers.