Faculty of Social Sciences (Health Sciences) and Gerontology Research Center (GEREC), Tampere University, Tampere, Finland.
Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Center for Alzheimer Research, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Front Public Health. 2021 Dec 24;9:770965. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.770965. eCollection 2021.
The COVID-19 pandemic and its related restrictions have affected the everyday life of older people. Advanced age is a significant predisposing factor for a more severe COVID-19 infection, increasing the risk for hospitalization and mortality. Even though restrictions have been, thus, well-grounded, they may also have had detrimental effects on the social well-being of older people. Personal networks and social activity are known protective factors against the premature decline in health and functioning, and it is widely acknowledged that social isolation increases feelings of loneliness, poor quality of life, and even the risk for diseases and disabilities among older adults. This qualitative study investigated changes in personal networks among community-dwelling oldest-old individuals (persons aged 80 and over) during the first and second waves of the COVID-19 pandemic in Finland. The data is part of the Cardiovascular Risk Factors, Aging, and Dementia (CAIDE85+) study, which is an ongoing large longitudinal population-based study in Finland. In this qualitative sub-study, we analyzed fifteen in-depth telephone interviews using directed content analyses and identified five types of changes in personal social networks during the pandemic. In type 1, all social contacts were significantly reduced due to official recommendations and fear of the virus. Type 2 included modified ways of being socially active i.e., by deploying new technology, and in type 3, social contacts increased during the lockdown. In type 4, personal social networks were changed unexpectedly or dramatically due to a death of a spouse, for example. In type 5, we observed stable social networks, which had not been affected by the pandemic. At an individual level, one person could have had different types of changes during the pandemic. These results highlight the heterogeneity of the oldest olds' personal social networks and changes related to them during the exceptional times of the COVID-19 pandemic. Social activity and personal networks play an important role in the well-being of the oldest old, but individual situations, needs, and preferences toward personal social networks should be taken into account when planning social activities, policies, and interventions.
新冠疫情及其相关限制措施影响了老年人的日常生活。高龄是 COVID-19 感染更为严重的重要诱发因素,增加了住院和死亡的风险。尽管这些限制措施是有充分依据的,但它们也可能对老年人的社会福祉产生不利影响。人际关系网络和社交活动是预防健康和功能过早衰退的已知保护因素,而且人们普遍认识到,社交隔离会增加老年人的孤独感、生活质量下降,甚至增加患病和残疾的风险。这项定性研究调查了 COVID-19 大流行第一波和第二波期间芬兰社区居住的最年长老年人(80 岁及以上)人际关系网络的变化。这些数据是芬兰正在进行的大型纵向基于人群的心血管危险因素、老龄化和痴呆症(CAIDE85+)研究的一部分。在这项定性子研究中,我们使用定向内容分析分析了 15 次深入的电话访谈,并确定了大流行期间人际关系网络的五种变化类型。在 1 型中,由于官方建议和对病毒的恐惧,所有社会接触都显著减少。2 型包括通过采用新技术改变社交方式,3 型则是在封锁期间社交接触增加。4 型是指由于配偶去世等原因,人际关系网络出人意料或戏剧性地发生变化。5 型是指观察到的稳定的人际关系网络,没有受到疫情的影响。在个体层面上,一个人在大流行期间可能会有不同类型的变化。这些结果突出了最年长老年人人际关系网络的异质性,以及 COVID-19 大流行期间与这些变化相关的情况。社交活动和人际关系网络对最年长老年人的福祉起着重要作用,但在规划社交活动、政策和干预措施时,应考虑个人情况、需求和对个人人际关系网络的偏好。