The research identified barriers and opportunities to improve Hispanic/Latino older adult access to community-based transportation and health resources. It was conducted with the existing Healthy Buddy model, which pairs older adults with college students who are trained to help them identify relevant transportation and health resources, while accommodating the unique needs of this transportation-disadvantaged population. The research team reevaluated the potential effectiveness of a Spanish-language accessible Healthy Buddy program model for increasing the self-efficacy and quality of life among Hispanic/Latino older adults. The team recruited bilingual (English-Spanish-speaking) students from multidisciplinary backgrounds. Older adult participants were invited to participate in pre- and post-surveys, including a qualitative interview, to allow the team to further evaluate the success of the program among Hispanic/Latino participants and to determine the replicability of the project in other communities with a significant population of transportation disadvantaged Hispanic/Latino older adults.
