Hung Maria Shuk Yu, Ho Ken Hok Man, Li Michael Man Ho, Choi Edward Kwok Yiu
S.K. Yee School of Health Sciences, Saint Francis University, Hong Kong, China.
School of Nursing and Midwifery, La Trobe University, Melbourne, VIC 3086, Australia.
Healthcare (Basel). 2024 Dec 10;12(24):2496. doi: 10.3390/healthcare12242496.
Loneliness among older individuals is widespread globally, leading to increasing public health and policy concerns. Migrant domestic workers (MDWs) offer continuous services for older adults worldwide, recompensing for dwindling support from family members. The study objectives were to explain how the quality of dyadic relationships with MDWs is associated with older adults' loneliness and further explore older adults' perceived experiences of care by MDWs. A mixed-methods study was conducted from 2021 to 2023. Convenience and snowball samplings of older adults aged ≥60 living with MDWs were recruited by elderly community centers in Hong Kong for a survey, and purposive sampling of in-depth interviews followed. The survey comprised several well-validated scales assessing loneliness, perceived social networks, and the quality of dyadic relationships. Face-to-face in-depth interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed for preliminary content analysis. A total of 288 older adults participated in the first phase of the survey interviews. Among them, 19 joined the in-depth interviews in the second phase. There is a high prevalence of loneliness among older adults being cared for by MDWs in Hong Kong. In addition, the results showed that social loneliness negatively and significantly correlated with perceived dyadic relationship quality and social network. Two major interrelated themes were identified along with eight subthemes: (1) established relational interaction with MDWs and (2) enjoyed functional assistance and support from MDWs. Our study findings illustrated that good dyadic relationships among MDWs and older adults enhance older adults' social connections and networking, alleviating loneliness and social isolation. Appropriate strategies are suggested to strengthen older adults' social support and improve the quality of dyadic relationships with MDWs, which may reduce loneliness among older adults.
老年人的孤独感在全球范围内普遍存在，这引发了越来越多的公共卫生和政策关注。家政移民工人（MDWs）为全球的老年人提供持续服务，弥补了家庭成员支持的减少。本研究的目的是解释与家政移民工人的二元关系质量如何与老年人的孤独感相关联，并进一步探讨老年人对家政移民工人照顾的感知体验。2021年至2023年进行了一项混合方法研究。香港的老年社区中心通过便利抽样和滚雪球抽样的方式，招募了与家政移民工人同住的60岁及以上老年人进行调查，随后进行了有目的抽样的深入访谈。该调查包括几个经过充分验证的量表，用于评估孤独感、感知到的社交网络和二元关系质量。面对面的深入访谈进行了录音并转录，以进行初步的内容分析。共有288名老年人参与了调查访谈的第一阶段。其中，19人参与了第二阶段的深入访谈。在香港，接受家政移民工人照顾的老年人中孤独感的患病率很高。此外，结果表明，社交孤独感与感知到的二元关系质量和社交网络呈负相关且具有显著相关性。确定了两个主要的相互关联的主题以及八个子主题：（1）与家政移民工人建立的关系互动；（2）享受家政移民工人的功能协助和支持。我们的研究结果表明，家政移民工人与老年人之间良好的二元关系增强了老年人的社会联系和社交网络，减轻了孤独感和社会隔离。建议采取适当的策略来加强老年人的社会支持，提高与家政移民工人的二元关系质量，这可能会减少老年人的孤独感。
