Background: Elderly people are vulnerable and belong to the high-risk groups of becoming seriously ill from COVID-19. Because of this, they also become more vulnerable in society due to COVID-19 restrictions. The government has used social distancing as a restriction to prevent the spread of COVID-19. People in general, and more specifically elderly people, were asked to stay at home to minimize the risk of becoming seriously ill for their own sake, and as not to overload the healthcare system. Social distancing had a negative impact on their health and well-being. Aim: To explore elderly's experience of social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: The method used was a literature review, using qualitative and quantitative research.Results: Two overarching themes emerged: Psychological strain and facing a new reality, with four sub-themes: Increased loneliness, Negative emotions, New challenges and Coping strategies. Conclusions: The social distancing, related to the COVID-19 pandemic, has had a negative impact on the health of older people. Elderly people have suffered from loneliness, lack of well-being and have become isolated from society during the pandemic. They were encouraged not to burden the healthcare system and all their health promotion activities had been suspended due to the pandemic. Many elderly people have multiple illnesses and have previously experienced loneliness, which also worsened during the pandemic. The results showed an increased experience of loneliness and psychological burden. To cope with their new reality and challenges within, some older people found digital ways of socializing with each other and their relatives. It is important that society targets these high-risk groups to minimize their loneliness, depression, and subsequent increased morbidity. Keywords: COVID-19, elderly, loneliness, mental health, social distancing.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:hv-19853 |
| Date | January 2023 |
| Creators | Asovic, Olena |
| Publisher | Högskolan Väst, Institutionen för hälsovetenskap |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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