Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39630688›Full record

ArticlePloS one2024

Living restricted lives - Understanding the impact of isolation, social distancing and other restriction measures on older care home residents and their relatives in England during the COVID-19 pandemic: A qualitative study.

Sarah Sims, Amit Desai, Ruth Harris, Anne Marie Rafferty, Shereen Hussein, Richard Adams, Lindsay Rees, Sally Brearley, Joanne M Fitzpatrick

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Sarah SimsFlorence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.
Amit DesaiFlorence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.
Ruth HarrisFlorence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.ORCID 0000-0002-4377-5063
Anne Marie RaffertyFlorence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.
Shereen HusseinFaculty of Public Health and Policy, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom.
Richard AdamsVoyage Care, London, United Kingdom.
Lindsay ReesQuality Compliance Systems, Hayes, United Kingdom.
Sally BrearleyFlorence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.
Joanne M FitzpatrickFlorence Nightingale Faculty of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.ORCID 0000-0002-6285-180X

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, care homes for older adults in England implemented isolation, social distancing and other restriction measures to help protect residents from contracting the virus. Little was known about the physical and psychological impacts that these measures would have upon residents and their relatives.

aimTo explore the experiences of residents and their relatives of living restricted lives during the pandemic.

methodsThis qualitative study was conducted as part of a 12-month, mixed-methods, phased design. From six purposively sampled care homes in England, 17 purposively sampled residents (all older adults) and 17 purposively sampled relatives participated in an individual, on-line interview, where they discussed their experiences of the restrictive measures implemented within their care home. Interviews were audio- and video-recorded with participants' permission and analysed using an inductive orientation to thematic analysis, with coding and theme development driven by the data content.

resultsParticipants' experiences of care home restrictions varied; their impact was influenced by the existing pattern of relationships that residents and their relatives maintained within and beyond the care home. It was further influenced by the fact that many residents and relatives were still learning how to manage their relationships in the new context of living in a care home. Social distancing measures made care homes feel less homely and denied residents, staff and relatives physical touch and other forms of non-verbal communication. Many residents expressed a broad sense of gratitude that was associated with safety and well-being beyond the pandemic. As older adults, they put the pandemic, and its associated restrictions, within the larger context of their lives.

conclusionsLearning from the COVID-19 pandemic is paramount for governments, societies, policy makers, care home providers, care homes and their staff, residents and their families and friends, and researchers. Our study makes an important contribution as one of the first to study the impact of implementing isolation, social distancing and other restrictive measures for care home residents and their relatives in England.

Indexed as

COVID-19FamilyHomes for the AgedNursing HomesPandemicsQualitative ResearchSARS-CoV-2Social IsolationAgedAged, 80 and overEnglandFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPhysical Distancing

Identifiers

PMID39630688
PMCPMC11616855

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.