Aging Relational Care COVID-19
Context
It is critical to understand how best to support older persons and their care during the pandemic in a variety of care settings. It is also important to understand how to support the health and wellbeing of healthcare providers who are caring for older persons during this crisis.
The purpose of this study is to understand, how best to support relational care of older people in pandemic times across a variety of care settings. We are also interested in understanding from the perspectives of healthcare providers in a range of practice settings, how the relational care of older persons has changed during the pandemic and how these changes are affecting healthcare providers' mental health and wellbeing, and what innovative strategies they have developed to overcome these changes.
A qualitative, critical incident method that focuses on generating practical solutions to real problems will be used to guide data collection and analysis. A total of 200 healthcare providers including nurses, practical nurses, personal support workers and other healthcare workers that provide direct care to older persons, will be recruited.
They will be provided a link to an online critical incident questionnaire (Opinio platform) where they will type responses. Demographic data will be analyzed using descriptive statistics. The typed responses will be analyzed using thematic analysis. Findings will provide critical information that Ontario urgently needs to improve the care for older persons during the pandemic crisis while protecting the health and wellbeing of HCPs caring for older persons. We expect that the creative and innovative strategies for relational care and other lessons learned will be of immediate value and use to HCPs, clinical educators and administrators across health-care sectors, but in long-term care settings, in particular.
Who is eligible to participate?
Administrators, Advanced Practice Nurses, Chaplains, Dieticians, Family members of older persons in
long-term care homes in Ontario, Managers, Nurse Educators, Occupational Therapists,
Personal Support Workers, Pharmacists, Physicians, Registered Nurses, Registered Practical Nurses, Recreational Therapists, Social Workers, Spiritual Care Practitioners.
