Abstract
Abstract
Background
Confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic has placed great stress on older adults, which may be affecting their quality of life. Thus, this study aims to describe the changes in mental and physical health, isolation and loneliness, residence and socioeconomic resources in a national cohort of Chilean older adults before and during the COVID-19 outbreak. It also analyzes the changes in depressive symptoms by changes in the other quality of life indicators before and during the COVID-19 outbreak. Possible methodological biases of telephone surveys in older adults living in non-developed countries are also discussed.
Methods
Between June and September 2020, a random subsample of 720 people who had participated in the face-to-face V National Survey on Quality of Life in Older Adults in Chile conducted at the end of 2019 was followed up by telephone. Descriptive bivariate analyses were performed using t-test and non-parametric tests for independent variables, comparing the baseline sample with the current 2020 follow-up sample during the peak of the pandemic outbreak in Latin America. Furthermore, descriptive bivariate analysis through t-test and non-parametric test for paired samples compared the follow-up subsample at baseline with the not-included sample, examining possible biases of the telephone interview compared with the face-to-face interview.
Results
In the panel, there was no variation in self-rated health. The health symptoms that worsened were memory, stomach, and mood problems. Depressive symptoms and anxiety increased; similarly, smartphone users, social contacts, intergenerational co-residence and resilience increased. The telephone follow-up sample had a higher educational level and greater smartphone use than those not included in the subsample.
Conclusions
Although some physical and mental health indicators have worsened during the pandemic, older adults mobilized resources that could allow them to maintain their quality of life, such as improved resilience. Thus, these findings can guide future research and the development of efficient strategies to improve these resources among older adults to ensure wellbeing.
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Subject
Geriatrics and Gerontology
Reference64 articles.
1. INE. Estimaciones y proyecciones de la población de Chile 2002–2035. Totales regionales, población urbana y rural. Instituto Nacional de Estadísticas de Chile; 2019. Available from: https://www.ine.cl/docs/default-source/proyecciones-de-poblacion/publicaciones-y-anuarios/base-2017/ine_estimaciones-y-proyecciones-2002-2035_base-2017_reg_%C3%A1rea_s%C3%ADntesis.pdf?sfvrsn=aaeb88e7_5
2. Villalobos Dintrans P, Browne J, Madero-Cabib I. It is not just mortality: a call from chile for comprehensive covid-19 policy responses among older people. J Gerontol Ser B. 2020;1:gbaa092 cited 2020 Apr 10.
3. NCHS. Weekly updates by select demographic and geographic characteristics provisional death counts for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): National Center for Health Statistics. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2020. Updated: September 30, 2020
4. Armitage R, Nellums LB. COVID-19 and the consequences of isolating the elderly. Lancet Public Health. 2020;5(5):e256.
5. Tyrrell CJ, Williams KN. The paradox of social distancing: implications for older adults in the context of COVID-19. Psychol Trauma Theory Res Pract Policy. 2020;12(S1):S214–6.
Cited by
66 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献