Face-To-Face with the Pandemic: Experiences of Staff in Portuguese Residential Care Facilities

ABSTRACT

The COVID-19 pandemic has placed care facilities for older adults under high pressure. This study aimed to identify the perception of staff in Portuguese Residential Care Facilities for Older Adults about their experience during and right after the first lockdown (March/April 2020) due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It comprises 198 respondents who answered an open question about their experiences during the pandemic on an online questionnaire. The main findings suggested three themes: 1) a cascade of new needs on top of old problems; 2) working on the razor’s edge: a difficult balance between protecting against the virus and maintaining one’s well-being; and 3) a need for support and appreciation. The pandemic has exposed and accentuated the fragilities of Residential Care Facilities in Portugal, which operate with low budgets, and minimum staff. The measures to protect against infection have to be balanced by actions to maintain psychosocial and rehabilitation activities with the residents, to promote their well-being and functional capacity.

KEYWORDS:

• COVID-19
• older people
• pandemic
• Residential Care Facilities for older adults
• gerontological practitioners

Acknowledgments

National Funds through Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) within the CINTESIS R&D Unit (reference UIDB/4255/2020).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

Maria Miguel Barbosa holds a PhD grant to PDGG ICBASUP, from the Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia [FCT, SFRH/BD/138897/2018], financed by national funds from Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Ensino Superior (MTCES) and Fundo Social Europeu (FSE-EU) through the Programa Operacional Regional Centro (PORC-UE).