CATCH-ON Connect: a tablet intervention to address social isolation and loneliness

Abstract

Technology can aid in alleviating social isolation and loneliness among older adults, however some older adults lack the knowledge and necessary skills to use the technology.

Objectives

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of CATCH-ON Connect, a cellular enabled tablet technical assistance program, on social isolation and loneliness among older adults.

Methods

This is a single-group pre-post program evaluation of the CATCH-ON Connect program.

Results

While there was no statistically significant change in social isolation, older adult participants reported significantly lower levels of loneliness following intervention.

Conclusion

This project demonstrates that tablet programs with technical assistance may benefit older adults. Further investigation is warranted to determine the impact of the internet access itself, the technical assistance, or both.

Keywords:

• Older adults
• social isolation
• loneliness
• technology
• tablet

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Informed consent statement

Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.

Institutional review board statement

The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki, and exemption was granted by the Institutional Review Board of Rush University Medical Center.

Data availability statement

Please contact authors for data-related requests.

Additional information

Funding

The program presented here is funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant number T1MHP39069. This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.