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Health Impacts of the Stay-at-Home Order on Community-Dwelling Older Adults and How Technologies May Help: Focus Group Study
- Source :
- JMIR Aging, Vol 4, Iss 1, p e25779 (2021), JMIR aging, vol 4, iss 1, JMIR Aging
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- JMIR Publications, 2021.
-
Abstract
- Background As of March 2021, in the USA, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in over 500,000 deaths, with a majority being people over 65 years of age. Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, preventive measures, including lockdowns, social isolation, quarantine, and social distancing, have been implemented to reduce viral spread. These measures, while effective for risk prevention, may contribute to increased social isolation and loneliness among older adults and negatively impact their mental and physical health. Objective This study aimed to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting “Stay-at-Home” order on the mental and physical health of older adults and to explore ways to safely increase social connectedness among them. Methods This qualitative study involved older adults living in a Continued Care Senior Housing Community (CCSHC) in southern California, USA. Four 90-minute focus groups were convened using the Zoom Video Communications platform during May 2020, involving 21 CCSHC residents. Participants were asked to describe how they were managing during the “stay-at-home” mandate that was implemented in March 2020, including its impact on their physical and mental health. Transcripts of each focus group were analyzed using qualitative methods. Results Four themes emerged from the qualitative data: (1) impact of the quarantine on health and well-being, (2) communication innovation and technology use, (3) effective ways of coping with the quarantine, and (4) improving access to technology and training. Participants reported a threat to their mental and physical health directly tied to the quarantine and exacerbated by social isolation and decreased physical activity. Technology was identified as a lifeline for many who are socially isolated from their friends and family. Conclusions Our study findings suggest that technology access, connectivity, and literacy are potential game-changers to supporting the mental and physical health of older adults and must be prioritized for future research.
- Subjects :
- Gerontology
Aging
Health (social science)
social isolation
COVID-19 pandemic
Health Informatics
lcsh:Geriatrics
Basic Behavioral and Social Science
03 medical and health sciences
Gerontechnology
continued care senior housing community
0302 clinical medicine
gerontechnology
videoconferencing
7.1 Individual care needs
030502 gerontology
Clinical Research
Behavioral and Social Science
medicine
loneliness
030212 general & internal medicine
Social isolation
older adults
Original Paper
independent living
Social distance
Prevention
aging
quarantine
Loneliness
Mental health
Focus group
lcsh:RC952-954.6
Mental Health
Management of diseases and conditions
Geriatrics and Gerontology
medicine.symptom
CCSHC
0305 other medical science
Psychology
physical health
mental health
Independent living
qualitative research
Qualitative research
housing for the elderly
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 25617605
- Volume :
- 4
- Issue :
- 1
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- JMIR Aging
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....2469147ad4c6a08df8459dacff0c7f16