Addressing isolation, loneliness and mental health during COVID: A university training partnership with senior living communities

ABSTRACT

Older adults living in congregate housing have been uniquely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The sudden interruption of routine activities, social isolation, and support adversely affected the wellbeing of residents in retirement facilities around the country and world. The stress of social isolation was fueled by the interruption of routine activities and support that in turn, adversely affected the wellbeing, mood, and cognition of many residents. Therefore, university clinical programs in psychology and counseling can address the needs of community older residents by preparing student clinicians to work with the aging population and to engage in telehealth models of outreach and interventions. This manuscript outlines a model of partnership between long-term care assisted living organizations and clinical training programs at a west coast university to meet community and educational needs of older residents.

KEYWORDS:

• Assisted living
• COVID-19
• depression
• clinical training
• isolation

Disclosure statement

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

Additional information

Funding

The author(s) reported that there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.