Keeping Older Adults in Continuing Care Communities Safe From COVID-19

Seniors in continuing care communities must contend with mandates to protect them from the COVID-19 epidemic, reports Kaiser Health News . Cancellation of group activities, bans on nonessential visitors, dining room closures, and other strictures to prevent contagion are making residents feel cooped up. Initial resistance to the restrictions among residents appears to have abated amid reports of increasing infections and deaths nationwide in such senior care communities. But full compliance is not guaranteed. "Every community will find there are certain people who have difficulty complying with requests," said Kristin Hambleton with Presbyterian Senior Living, which operates 12 continuing care retirement communities in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and Ohio. "We are addressing each of those people on an individual basis and discussing with them how their choices can impact the people they live with and the staff that works here." A loss of regular contact with other people can encourage loneliness or depression, while changes in health status that might have been noticed if residents did not show up for dinner now could go overlooked. A lack of stimulation also can cause declining motivation and cognition. In response, communities are having staff check in regularly with vulnerable residents, offering to arrange video visits with loved ones, organizing Zoom interest groups for residents, and creating programming like exercise sessions broadcast over closed-circuit, in-house TV stations.