Dataset Information

Isolating together during COVID-19: Results from the Telehealth Intervention Program for older adults.

ABSTRACT:

Background

A pressing challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond is to provide accessible and scalable mental health support to isolated older adults in the community. The Telehealth Intervention Program for Older Adults (TIP-OA) is a large-scale, volunteer-based, friendly telephone support program designed to address this unmet need.

Methods

A prospective cohort study of 112 TIP-OA participants aged ≥60 years old was conducted in Quebec, Canada (October 2020-June 2021). The intervention consisted of weekly friendly phone calls from trained volunteers. The primary outcome measures included changes in scores of stress, depression, anxiety, and fear surrounding COVID-19, assessed at baseline, 4 and 8-weeks. Additional subgroup analyses were performed with participants with higher baseline scores.

Results

The subgroup of participants with higher baseline depression scores (PHQ9 ≥10) had significant improvements in depression scores over the 8-week period measured [mean change score = -2.27 (±4.76), 95%CI (-3.719, -0.827), p = 0.003]. Similarly, participants with higher baseline anxiety scores (GAD7 ≥10) had an improvement over the same period, which, approached significance (p = 0.06). Moreover, despite peaks in the pandemic and related stressors, our study found no significant (p ≥ 0.09) increase in stress, depression, anxiety or fear of COVID-19 scores.

Discussion

This scalable, volunteer-based, friendly telephone intervention program was associated with decreased scores of depression and anxiety in older adults who reported higher scores at baseline (PHQ 9 ≥10 and GAD7 ≥10).

SUBMITTER: Sekhon H

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9592737 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Isolating together during COVID-19: Results from the Telehealth Intervention Program for older adults.

Sekhon Harmehr H Lavin Paola P Vacaflor Blanca B Rigas Christina C Cinalioglu Karin K Su Chien-Lin CL Bodenstein Katie K Dikaios Elena E Goodman Allana A Raymond Florence Coulombe FC Ibrahim Marim M Bein Magnus M Gruber Johanna J Se Jade J Sasi Neeti N Walsh Chesley C Nazar Rim R Hanganu Cezara C Berkani Sonia S Royal Isabelle I Schiavetto Alessandra A Looper Karl K Launay Cyrille C McDonald Emily G EG Seitz Dallas D Kumar Sanjeev S Beauchet Olivier O Khoury Bassam B Bouchard Stephane S Battistini Bruno B Fallavollita Pascal P Miresco Marc M Bruneau Marie-Andrée MA Vahia Ipsit I Bukhari Syeda S Rej Soham S

Frontiers in medicine 20221011

<h4>Background</h4>A pressing challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond is to provide accessible and scalable mental health support to isolated older adults in the community. The Telehealth Intervention Program for Older Adults (TIP-OA) is a large-scale, volunteer-based, friendly telephone support program designed to address this unmet need.<h4>Methods</h4>A prospective cohort study of 112 TIP-OA participants aged ≥60 years old was conducted in Quebec, Canada (October 2020-June 2021). Th ...[more]

PMID: 36304184

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Dataset Information

Isolating together during COVID-19: Results from the Telehealth Intervention Program for older adults.

Background

Methods

Results

Discussion

Publications

Isolating together during COVID-19: Results from the Telehealth Intervention Program for older adults.

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