Many older, racialised minority migrants living in the UK had never heard the term 'frailty' and had no understanding of what it might mean, with three key themes identified: frailty is meaningless, stigma discourse prevails, and the feeling of frailty ebbs and flows.
Key Findings
Results
Many older, racialised minority migrants living in the UK had not heard the term frailty and had no understanding of what it might mean.
73 participants from 6 different racialised groups living in a UK city were included in the study.
Photovoice and biographical interviews were used as the data collection methods.
Braun and Clarke's reflexive thematic analysis was applied to analyse talk about frailty.
The finding that frailty was meaningless was more likely among participants who spoke little English and those who had not been living in the UK for long.
Results
Three key themes characterised how older, racialised minority migrants understood and made sense of frailty: frailty is meaningless, stigma discourse prevails, and the feeling of frailty ebbs and flows.
The first theme, 'frailty is meaningless,' reflected that many participants had no prior encounter with the term in any setting.
The second theme, 'stigma discourse prevails,' indicates that when participants did engage with the concept, negative or stigmatising associations were present.
The third theme, 'the feeling of frailty ebbs and flows,' suggests participants perceived frailty as a fluctuating rather than static experience.
Trends across themes were observed in relation to English language use and length of time residing in the UK.
Results
Language proficiency and length of residence in the UK were associated with differential understanding of the term frailty among participants.
Participants who spoke little English were more likely to find frailty meaningless.
Participants who had not been living in the UK for long were also more likely to be unfamiliar with the concept.
These trends were observed across the three identified themes.
The study was set against a backdrop of enduring health inequality in older age, in which ethnicity is described as 'a constant corelative factor.'
Discussion
Lack of familiarity with the term frailty among older, racially minoritised patients is expected to directly impact candidacy and negotiated access to and uptake of healthcare services.
The authors state this will have 'a direct impact on candidacy and the negotiated access to and uptake of healthcare services.'
The study was motivated by the increasing use of frailty scores and measures to make clinical decisions.
Healthcare professionals are advised to consider that older, racially minoritised patients may have never encountered the term frailty before in any type of setting.
The study explores the experience of getting older, not frailty directly, using photovoice and biographical interviews across 6 racialised groups.
What This Means
This research explored how older people from racialised minority migrant communities in the UK understand and interpret the word 'frailty' — a term commonly used by doctors and healthcare systems to assess and make decisions about older patients' health. The study involved 73 participants from six different racial and ethnic groups living in a UK city, who took part in photo-based interviews and biographical storytelling. The researchers found that many participants had simply never heard the word 'frailty' before and had no idea what it meant, particularly those who spoke little English or had lived in the UK for a shorter period of time.
Three main themes emerged from the data. First, frailty was essentially meaningless to many participants — it was not part of their vocabulary or cultural framework for understanding ageing. Second, when participants did engage with the concept, stigma-related ideas came to the fore, suggesting the term carries negative connotations. Third, some participants described the feeling of frailty as something that comes and goes rather than being a fixed or permanent state, which contrasts with how frailty is often measured clinically as a stable condition.
This research suggests that using the term 'frailty' in healthcare settings with older patients from racialised minority migrant backgrounds may create significant communication barriers. If patients are unfamiliar with the concept entirely, they may be less likely to engage with frailty-related assessments, services, or support — potentially worsening existing health inequalities already known to affect ethnic minority communities in older age. The findings point to the need for healthcare professionals to consider their language carefully and not assume that clinical concepts like frailty are universally understood.
Cluley V, Pickard S, Conroy S, Banerjee J. (2026). What does frailty mean to older, racialised minority migrants living in the UK? A qualitative exploration of meaning and interpretation.. Age and ageing. https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afag169