Researchers from the Amsterdam UMC have come to this remarkable conclusion. ‘We were also surprised,’ says professor of elderly care Hein van Hout. “We expected to see the opposite.”
The visit ban was one of the most painful measures the cabinet had to take during the first wave. From one day to the next, children could no longer visit their parents, or years of lovers could only see each other from behind glass. Now it appears that for many elderly people this forced incarceration was less dramatic than previously thought.
For their research, Van Hout and a colleague dove into anonymized data from more than 500 residents during the lockdown, and from 500 residents exactly one year earlier. Many nursing homes use a system in which they can systematically assess the residents several times a year. For example, they keep a structural eye on mood, behavior, cognitive skills and medication use.
Better mood
These data show that the feeling of loneliness among the elderly did increase slightly, but not significantly. The same is true for the number of times an elder withdrew, which may indicate some form of apathy.
The number of conflicts did drop significantly, as did the use of sleep medication. In addition, the staff reported no worse mood among residents, and no decreased cognition. They also had more contact with family members than before: although not in person, but via video calling, for example.
Also surprising, according to the researchers: for residents without dementia, who were therefore aware of the social isolation, these findings apply equally well.
The peace in the houses has generally benefited the residents, Van Hout thinks. ‘We hear from the care staff that not having to walk in and out of visitors has had a beneficial, calming effect on the living areas in particular.’
More contact
Henk Nies from Vilans, the national knowledge center for long-term care, recognizes the results. ‘There is certainly a group that does well in so much rest, that has also been observed in other places, and we see it in reports from abroad.’ In the care of the disabled, the disappearance of, for example, daytime activities appears to be beneficial for some people.
Another explanation could be that during the lockdown there was more time for one-on-one contact between care provider and resident, and therefore more focused attention, Nies thinks.
But, he says, ‘every person is a deviation from the mean. There are also people for whom the visiting ban was very sad, or who even died of loneliness. That is also true.’
Some nursing homes use the conclusions from these types of studies to also shape their visit appointments differently in the future, Nies knows. ‘If it turns out that certain residents are getting better after fewer or different types of visitors, they discuss this with the family. Sometimes, for example, it is better to drop by for a short period of time more often than to come by for two hours once a week.
Actiz, the association of elderly care institutions, also agrees with the conclusions. ‘These are also a great compliment to all employees in the nursing homes, who assisted the residents under difficult circumstances,’ says a spokesman. But the investigation should not be a license to impose a new visit ban more easily now, he warns. ‘The impact on residents, employees, family members and loved ones has been enormous.’
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