Care access barriers and adaptive strategies of older migrants in Germany

The increasing number of older migrants in Germany presents a distinctive set of challenges in accessing home care services, largely due to linguistic, bureaucratic, and cultural barriers. This study employs the analytical lens of bricolage to examine the adaptive strategies employed by older migrants, informal carers, and professionals in addressing care gaps. The research, which draws on 49 semi-structured interviews conducted across Berlin, Leverkusen, and Brandenburg, reveals that older migrants rely on familial and community networks for a range of support, including translation, emotional support, and navigation of complex systems.

Informal carers often utilise a combination of personal support and digital tools such as translation apps to surmount encountered barriers, thereby demonstrating resilience while drawing attention to the inequities in care accessibility. Similarly, professionals adopt improvised strategies, but they are constrained by factors such as staffing shortages, resource limitations, and structural discrimination, which compromise the delivery of culturally responsive care.

These results emphasise the collective nature of bricolage, whereby stakeholders work and improvise to address deficiencies in care. Although bricolage encourages autonomy, it also highlights care system shortcomings that contribute to the reliance on improvised solutions. Policy recommendations include enhancing linguistic accessibility, leveraging migrant-led organisations, and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration to build more equitable care systems in Germany.