Open AccessImpact of COVID-19 on the Health and Well-being of Informal Caregivers of People with Dementia: A Rapid Systematic Review
Author(s) -
M. Courtney Hughes,
Yujun Liu,
Abby Baumbach
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
gerontology and geriatric medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2333-7214
DOI - 10.1177/23337214211020164
Subject(s) - dementia , psychosocial , pandemic , social isolation , depression (economics) , medicine , gerontology , covid-19 , anxiety , isolation (microbiology) , psychological resilience , psychology , disease , psychiatry , infectious disease (medical specialty) , pathology , economics , psychotherapist , macroeconomics , biology , microbiology and biotechnology
Background: In December 2019, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), or COVID-19, raised worldwide concern. Since then, the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively influenced health and wellness across the globe and caused nearly three million deaths. This study focuses on informal caregivers of people with dementia, a disease that affects about 50 million older adults worldwide and requires much caregiving support. Objective: Examine the current literature on the impact of COVID-19 on the health and well-being of informal caregivers for people with dementia. Method: This rapid review was conducted across five electronic databases for quantitative and qualitative articles published through March 15, 2021. Results: The 10 studies included in this review reported quantitative descriptive data from across the globe; however, no studies existed from the U.S. or East Asia countries. All of the studies examined the psychological rather than physical impact of COVID-19 and highlighted risk and protective factors in the areas of psychosocial (resilience, neuropsychiatric, and social isolation), sociodemographic (gender and education), and environmental (home confinement, living arrangement, and dementia stage). Conclusion: COVID-19 has had a considerable negative impact on the psychological well-being of informal caregivers of people with dementia, namely causing more depression and anxiety than pre-pandemic.