Age-friendly student senior connection: students' experience in an interprofessional pilot program to combat loneliness and isolation among older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic.
J Interprof Care
; 34(5): 668-671, 2020.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-801757
ABSTRACT
Loneliness and isolation are concerning consequences of social distancing and other stay-at-home orders for older adults globally, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. To combat loneliness and isolation among older adults residing in California, the Keck School of Medicine collaborated with other health profession schools at the University of Southern California (USC) to create the Age-Friendly Student Senior Connection (AFSSC). A total of 115 interprofessional graduate students were linked with older adults. Students engaged in 30 to 60 minute phone calls with older adults 2 to 5 times per week for 6 weeks. Student preparation included asynchronous video and web-based learning, weekly synchronous de-briefing sessions with a participating faculty member via Zoom, phone, and e-mail support from faculty, and information about resources for older adults. Faculty held weekly meetings throughout the pilot and developed new resources to respond to older adult needs, as reported by students. A total of 102 students completed pre-program and post-program surveys. Preliminary results show statistically significant changes in the reported benefits and outcomes from students participating in the program.
Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Social Isolation
/
Social Support
/
Allied Health Personnel
/
Interpersonal Relations
/
Loneliness
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Randomized controlled trials
Limits:
Aged
/
Humans
Country/Region as subject:
North America
Language:
English
Journal:
J Interprof Care
Journal subject:
Health Services
Year:
2020
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
13561820.2020.1822308
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