Document Type : Original Article
Authors
- . Avinash Chakrawarty
- . Piyush Ranjan 1
- . Kamal Bandhu Klanidhi
- . Divjyot Kaur 2
- . Siddharth Sarkar 3
- . Anamika Sahu 3
- . M. Bhavesh 1
- . Upendra Baitha 1
- . Arvind Kumar 1
- . Naveet Wig 1
1 Department of Medicine All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
2 Department of Home Sciences, University of Delhi, New Delhi, India,
3 Department of Psychiatry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India
Abstract
BACKGROUND: COVID‑19 may seem to have an impact on middle‑aged and elderly people.
However, not much is known about the lived experiences of middle‑aged and elderly people during
this pandemic. The study aims to explore psychosocial and behavioral impact of COVID‑19 on the
lives of these individuals.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Three focus group discussions and seven in‑depth interviews were
conducted. A format to guide discussions and interviews was made to bring uniformity across groups
and participants. Participants were recruited through purposive and snowball sampling techniques.
Discussions were recorded and transcribed verbatim. Thematic analysis method was used to extract
key conceptual themes.
RESULTS: There were 12 male and 10 female participants included, with a mean age of
62.2 years. Five subcategories identified were: Fear and anxiety, household confinement, lifestyle
modification, preventive practices, and coping strategies. These sub‑categories formed three major
categories‑psychological, social, and behavioral which ultimately led to the emergence of the main
theme that is, COVID‑19 effects on the life of middle‑aged and older individuals.
CONCLUSION: Middle‑aged and elderly people are affected in many ways due to COVID‑19.
Addressing the psycho‑social and behavioral problems can help in the better adjustment to tide
over the pandemic.
Keywords
Bhattacharya A, et al. Is excess weight a risk factor for the
development of COVID 19 infection? A preliminary report from
India. Diabetes Metab Syndr 2020;14:1805‑7.
2. Williamson EJ, Walker AJ, Bhaskaran K, Bacon S, Bates C,
Morton CE, et al. Open SAFELY: Factors associated with
COVID‑19 death in 17 million patients. Nature 2020;584:430‑6.
3. Sharma S. 90% of those Killed by COVID in India are Older
than 40, 69% are Men. Hindustan Times; 2020. Available
from: https://www.hindustantimes.com/india‑news/90-ofthose-killed-by-covid‑in‑india‑are‑older‑than‑40‑69‑are‑men/
story‑glg0Ct4rHQ1YVvZgnc kUcM.html. [Last accessed on 2020
Sep 28].
4. R anjan P, Bhattacharya A, Chakrawarty A, Das R, Kumar A,
Paney S, et al. Association between self‑reported adherence to
preventive practices and probability of turning COVID‑19 positive:
A cross‑sectional analytical study. Cureus 2020;12:E11815. [doi:
10.7759/cureus. 11815].
5. Armitage R, Nellums LB. COVID‑19 and the consequences of
isolating the elderly. Lancet Public Health 2020;5:e256.
6. Gyasi RM. Fighting COVID‑19: Fear and Internal Conflict among
Older Adults in Ghana. J Gerontol Soc Work 2020;63:688‑90.
7. Vindrola‑Padros C, Chisnall G, Cooper S, Dowrick A, Djellouli N,
Symmons SM, et al. Carrying out rapid qualitative research during
a pandemic: Emerging lessons from COVID‑19. Qual Health Res
2020;30:2192‑204.
8. Rahimi H, Kalantari A, Rafiee N, Khosravi S. Social trends
affecting the future of Iran’s health system: A qualitative study
using focus group discussion. Int J Prev Med 2019;10:115.
9. De Leo D, Trabucchi M. COVID‑19 and the Fears of Italian Senior
Citizens. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2020;17:3572.
10. Banerjee D. The impact of Covid‑19 pandemic on elderly mental
health. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry 2020;. doi: 10.1002/gps. 5320
11. Aung MN, Yuasa M, Koyanagi Y, Aung TNN, Moolphate S,
Matsumoto H, et al. Sustainable health promotion for the seniors during COVID‑19 outbreak: A lesson from Tokyo. J Infect Dev
Ctries 2020;14:328‑31.
12. Chopra S, Ranjan P, Singh V, Kumar S, Arora M, Hasan MS,
et al. Impact of COVID‑19 on lifestyle‑related behaviours‑ a
cross‑sectional audit of responses from nine hundred and
ninety‑five participants from India. Diabetes Metab Syndr
2020;14:2021‑30.
13. Food and Agriculture Organization. Maintaining a Healthy Diet
during the COVID‑19 Pandemic. Available from: http://www.
fao.org/3/ca8380en/ca8380en.pdf. [Last accessed on 2020 Sep
24].
14. Rodríguez‑Pérez C, Molina‑Montes E, Verardo V, Artacho R,
García‑Villanova B, Guerra‑Hernández EJ, et al. Changes in
dietary behaviours during the COVID‑19 outbreak confinement
in the Spanish COVIDiet study. Nutrients 2020;12:1730.
15. Giustino V, Parroco AM, Gennaro A, Musumeci G, Palma A,
Battaglia G. Physical activity levels and related energy
expenditure during COVID‑19 quarantine among the sicilian
active population: A cross‑sectional online survey study.
Sustainability 2020;12:4356.
16. Emerson KG. Coping with being cooped up: Social distancing
during COVID‑19 among 60+in the United States. Rev Panam
Salud Publica 2020;44:e81.
17. Heid AR, Cartwright F, Wilson‑Genderson M, Pruchno R.
Challenges experienced by older people during the initial months
of the COVID‑19 pandemic. Gerontologist 2020; http://doi.
org/10.1093/geront/gnaa138
18. Brooke J, Clark M. Older people’s early experience of household
isolation and social distancing during COVID-19. J Clin Nurs
2020; .https://doi.org/10.1111/jocn. 15485
19. Kumari A, Ranjan P, Sharma KA, Sahu A, Bharti J, ZangmoR, et al.
Impact of COVID 19 on psychosocial functioning of peripartum
women: A qualitative study comprising focus group discussions
and in‑depth interviews. Int J Gynaecol Obstet 2020 Dec 11.
https://doi.org/10.1002/ijgo. 13524
20. Chopra S, Ranjan P, Malhotra A, Sahu A, Dwivedi SN, Baitha U,
et al. Development and validation of a questionnaire to evaluate
the impact of COVID on lifestyle related behaviors: Eating habits,
activity and sleep behavior. Public Health Nutr 2020 Nov 16:1‑16.
doi: 10.1017/S1368980020004656
21. Kumari A, Ranjan P, Vikram NK, Kaur D, Sahu A, Dwivedi SN,
et al. A short questionnaire to assess changes in lifestyle‑related
behaviour during COVID 19 pandemic. Diabetes Metab Syndr
2020;14:1697‑701.
22. Chakrawarty A, Ranjan P, Thrinath A, Aggarwal E, Isaac JA,
Berry P, et al. Assessment of preventive practices followed by
general public during COVID‑19 pandemic – A cross‑sectional
survey from India. Cureus 2020;12:e11274.
)