Search

Early in the COVID-19 pandemic drastic measures have been implemented restricting social contact between residents and visitors was well within long term care facilities in most countries. Breaking off bonds between residents and their loved ones and the loss of autonomy experienced by residents prepared a breeding ground for feelings of helplessness and being at the mercy. At the same time, ceasing communal meals and activities the lack of stimulation brought along the danger of cognitive deterioration. Keeping residents in their room put residents at risk of unsupervised falls. The absence of visitors during meal times could have negative impact on residents’ nutritional status. Leaders and experts in the field called for innovative interventions such as video-conferencing in order to ameliorate anticipated negative impact of contact restrictions on nursing home residents. Most concerns stem from pre-pandemic research on loneliness and social isolation underpinned with anecdotal examples of recent months. More than a year after the World Health Organization recommended to implement restrictions on visitors in order to protect long term-care residents from infection this review seeks to (1) identify evidence of non-COVID health consequences of contact restrictions accumulated since the beginning of the pandemic and (2) map research activities and case reports related to interventions and strategies responding to the social isolation of long-term care residents during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. We will search relevant data bases in a systematic manner and identify relevant publications through a process of screening and full text review by two researchers independently. Data will be extracted and will be presented in tables and a narrative synthesis.