Department of Gerontology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada.
Gerontology Research Centre, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada.
Front Public Health. 2023 May 9;11:1158716. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2023.1158716. eCollection 2023.
Social isolation and loneliness (SI/L) are considered critical public health issues. The primary objective of this scoping review is to document the experience of SI/L among older adults in Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic, given research gaps in this area. We identified the reasons for SI/L, the effects of SI/L, SI/L coping strategies, and research and policy gaps in SI/L experiences among older adults in Africa during COVID-19.
Six databases (PubMed, Scopus, CINAHL, APA PsycINFO, Web of Science, and Ageline) were used to identify studies reporting the experiences of SI/L among older adults in Africa during the COVID-19 lockdown. We adopted the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) methodology and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR).
Social isolation and loneliness due to COVID-19 in Africa affected older adults' mental, communal, spiritual, financial, and physical health. The use of technology was vital, as was the role of social networks within the family, community, religious groups, and government. Methodological challenges include the risk of selective survival bias, sampling biases, and limited inductive value due to context. Also, lack of large-scale mixed methods longitudinal studies to capture the experiences of older adults during COVID-19. There were essential policy gaps for African mental health support services, media programs, and community care service integration targeting older adults in the era of the COVID-19 lockdown.
Like in other countries, COVID-19 lockdown policies and the lockdown restrictions primarily caused the experience of SI/L among older adults in Africa. In African countries, they resulted in a severance of older adults from the cultural structure of care for older adults and their familial support systems. Weak government intervention, personal situations, challenges regarding technology, and detachment from daily activities, disproportionately affected older adults in Africa.
社会隔离和孤独（SI/L）被认为是严重的公共卫生问题。本范围综述的主要目的是记录 COVID-19 大流行期间非洲老年人的 SI/L 经历，因为该领域存在研究空白。我们确定了 SI/L 的原因、SI/L 的影响、SI/L 的应对策略，以及 COVID-19 期间非洲老年人 SI/L 经验的研究和政策差距。
使用六个数据库（PubMed、Scopus、CINAHL、APA PsycINFO、Web of Science 和 Ageline）来确定报告 COVID-19 封锁期间非洲老年人 SI/L 经历的研究。我们采用了 Joanna Briggs 研究所（JBI）的方法和系统评价和荟萃分析扩展的首选报告项目（PRISMA-ScR）。
由于 COVID-19 在非洲，社会隔离和孤独感影响了老年人的心理健康、社区关系、精神健康、财务健康和身体健康。使用技术至关重要，家庭、社区、宗教团体和政府内部的社会网络也发挥了重要作用。方法学挑战包括选择性生存偏差、抽样偏差和由于背景限制而导致的归纳价值有限的风险。此外，缺乏大规模的混合方法纵向研究来捕捉 COVID-19 期间老年人的经历。在 COVID-19 封锁期间，针对老年人的非洲心理健康支持服务、媒体计划和社区关怀服务整合方面存在重要的政策差距。
与其他国家一样，COVID-19 封锁政策和封锁限制主要导致了非洲老年人的 SI/L 经历。在非洲国家，这导致老年人与照顾老年人的文化结构以及他们的家庭支持系统脱节。政府干预乏力、个人情况、技术挑战以及与日常活动脱节，对非洲老年人的影响不成比例。
