ABSTRACT
Background: At the outbreak of the pandemic in Chicago, there were disruptions in daily life, communication and delivery of healthcare services. Our objective was to investigate mental well-being, lifestyle behaviors, self-management capacity and healthcare utilization during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic among older adults with one or multiple chronic conditions. Methods: Telephone interviews were conducted as part of the ongoing COVID-19 & Chronic Conditions (C3) study between March and May 2020. Participants were recruited from local academic and safety net clinics and participated in existing research studies prepandemic. Self-report items assessed perceived stress due to coronavirus, self-management capacity and healthcare utilization. Validated measures assessed well-being, alcohol consumption, physical activity and self-efficacy. Results: The average age of participants (N=565) was 62.4, most were female (61.4%), and over half (n=310) were non-White or Latinx. One in five (20.7%) participants were stressed about the coronavirus most or all the time. Almost a quarter (22.3%) engaged in hazardous drinking and 79.7% reported insufficient physical activity. Nearly one in four participants (23.7%) avoided seeking medical care due to worry about COVID-19. In multivariable analyses, women reported more stress than men. Greater COVID-19 related stress and low health activation were associated with less physical activity, lower self-efficacy, greater difficulty managing health/medications and more avoidance of medical care. Conclusion: Consequences of COVID-19 on the mental wellbeing, lifestyle and ability of adults with chronic conditions to manage health were apparent in the initial months of the pandemic. As the C3 study is ongoing, it will be possible to examine pre- and postpandemic factors over time to understand the influence of the pandemic on the overall health trajectories of older adults.