Department of Primary Care & Mental Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK.
NIHR ARC NWC, Liverpool, UK.
Health Soc Care Community. 2022 Feb;30(2):e461-e468. doi: 10.1111/hsc.13228. Epub 2020 Dec 8.
A large number of older adults (65+ years) live on their own, and can experience high levels of loneliness. However, accessing activities to engage with their community can be difficult either due to their age and associated comorbidities, such as frailty, or due to financial reasons, for lacking the funds to access transport to activities. The aim of this study was to evaluate an existing service in the North West of England, Community Connectors, which enables people aged 18 and above to access social activities within their community in order to reduce loneliness and social isolation. This study only included middle-aged and older adults. A total of 13 semi-structured interviews were performed after people had taken part in the 14-week Community Connectors programme. Data were coded by two research team members by using thematic analysis. Members of the public were involved in the design of this study, and in the dissemination. Between June 2017 to September 2018, 234 older adults and 53 middle-aged adults were referred to Community Connectors. Four themes emerged from the interviews: falling out of society; easy self-referral; structured supportive services; and reconnecting with community. Services often depend on individuals making the first step to access, however, without easy or facilitated access people can becoming isolated. Participants reported on how Community Connectors provided easy and open access that enabled better response to individual needs. The structured support provided individuals with confidence in engaging with community activities and enhanced individuals' social networks. Community Connectors enables middle-aged and older adults to engage with social activities in their community, and thus helps participants to feel less lonely and more socially connected. Future work needs to quantitatively measure the impacts of the service on loneliness, depression, and social connectedness in order to fully understand their impact.
大量老年人（65 岁以上）独自生活，可能会感到高度孤独。然而，由于他们的年龄和相关合并症（如虚弱），或者由于缺乏活动交通资金等经济原因，他们可能难以参与社区活动。本研究旨在评估英格兰西北部现有的一项服务，社区联络人，该服务使 18 岁及以上的人能够参与社区内的社交活动，以减少孤独感和社会隔离。本研究仅包括中年和老年人。在参加为期 14 周的社区联络人计划后，对 13 名参与者进行了半结构化访谈。两名研究团队成员通过主题分析对数据进行了编码。公众成员参与了这项研究的设计和传播。2017 年 6 月至 2018 年 9 月，共有 234 名老年人和 53 名中年人被转介到社区联络人。访谈中出现了四个主题：脱离社会；易于自我推荐；结构化的支持服务；重新与社区联系。服务通常依赖于个人首先采取行动来获取，但如果没有便捷或便利的获取途径，人们可能会变得孤立。参与者报告了社区联络人如何提供轻松和开放的获取途径，从而更好地满足个人的需求。提供的结构化支持使个人对参与社区活动充满信心，并增强了个人的社交网络。社区联络人使中年和老年人能够参与社区的社交活动，从而帮助参与者减少孤独感，增强社交联系。未来需要通过定量测量该服务对孤独感、抑郁和社交联系的影响，以全面了解其影响。
