Experiences of elderly people living alone during the COVID-19 pandemic: Phenomenological research

BACKGROUND: One of the groups most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, with a high mortality and morbidity rate, is the elderly. Among these, one of the most affected groups is the elderly living alone. No study has been found in the literature that questions the experiences of the elderly living alone in this process in detail. It is aimed to explore the experiences of elderly individuals living alone during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to address this process and the problems they experience with all aspects in terms of health. METHODS: In qualitative research, a phenomenological approach was adopted, and this study was conducted with 14 elderly people living alone. Individual in-depth face-to-face interviews were conducted. A semi-structured interview form was used in the interviews. Content analysis was used in the analysis of the data. Kappa analysis was performed to determine the internal consistency of the responses from the experts. Cohen's kappa coefficient was 0.95, which means a perfect fit. RESULTS: The mean age of the individuals was 76.14±7.04 and 71.4% of the participants were women. The main themes identified were a) the effects of pandemic restrictions, b) the view of the elderly on pandemic rules, c) physical, d) mental and e) social health problems, f) coping strategies of the elderly, g) support received in problem solving, h) and solution suggestions from the elderly. CONCLUSIONS: Pandemic restrictions in elderly individuals living alone have caused disruption of health checks and changes in daily life. The elderly experienced physical, mental and social health problems during the pandemic and developed coping strategies to combat the process. The experiences of the elderly and their suggestions should be taken into account in being prepared for any crisis that may affect the whole society, especially the elderly living alone. KEY MESSAGES: • The elderly living alone experienced physical, mental and social health problems during the pandemic period. • During the pandemic period, the elderly are affected in many ways such as economically, socially, etc. In this process, they developed coping strategies and gave suggestions for the next crises.