A series of reflections on the aged dimensions of the COVID-19 pandemic. Edited by Narelle Warren and published simultaneously by AAGE and Somatosphere
As visiting restrictions continue, elders in Danish plejehjem are experiencing a ‘stolen spring’
As soon as I heard about these restrictions, I thought: This is not good. ‘ Amy Clotworthy, an ethnologist at the Center for Healthy Aging at the University of Copenhagen, on the need to rethink the design of long-term care institutions to respect personhood
It takes two to tango
Miriam Verhage, Lucia Thielman, Lieke de Kock, Jolanda Lindenberg interviewed 59 seniors about their experiences during the COVID-19 crisis and their views on the portrayal of senior adults in the national media. What they found out was that not only were elders’ experiences diverse, but that many expressed solidarity and a strength and willingness to contribute to society.
In and outside the nursing home
On the (im)possibilities of meaningful contact while being held apart Natashe Lemos Dekker, Laura Vermeulen, and Jeannette Pols describe the consequences of COVID-19 restrictions on physical contact for nursing home residents. Even when alternate ways of staying in touch are used, the additional restrictions have caused profound changes in the possibility for being with others.
On Vulnerability, Resilience, and Age: Older Americans Reflect on the Pandemic
Sarah Lamb, Ji Chen, Claire Ogden Tirtza Schramm, and Lin Xinbei Not all older adults are languishing in the Covid-19 age. New research shows Americans’ optimistic stories of resilience help recast the overgeneralized narrative of the vulnerable and isolated older person.
How is the pandemic affecting people with dementia?
A case study Dena Shenk and Andrea Freidus present a case study of person-centered dementia care in a LTC facility during the pandemic. This post is a preview of the more in-depth analysis to be published in the upcoming Anthropology & Aging special issue.
“Out of options”
The implications of COVID-19 for hospitalized patients with cognitive impairment
Kelly Colas, anthropologist and internal medicine intern looks at the ways hospitals have become zones of liminality for older patients as discharge is complicated by COVID-19.
Population Ageing and COVID-19 Infections in Sri Lanka
Kalinga Tudor Silva examines intergenerational support mechanisms and infection patterns in a country where 80 percent of older people live with their children or in close proximity, but where overseas migrant work is an important part of the economy.
Those Who Come Early
Reflections on the Social Standing of Senior Citizens in the Time of COVID-19 Pandemic in Japan
Erika Takahashi and Jason Danely explore how COVID-19 has not only reshaped access to protective equipment, especially face masks, in Japan but also reveals social structural weak points.
The Power of Bingo During COVID-19
In this contribution to our ‘The Age of COVID-19’ series, Carrie Ryan explores how Bingo play during the COVID-19 pandemic creates social ties between older people and communities, contributing to a post-pandemic future.
Caring in the Time of Corona: Technological Possibilities and Limitations
Matthew Lariviere considers the changing role and function of technologies in care during the COVID-19 pandemic
Virginia’s story: How the COVID-19 crisis can help us think about older adults who live in perennial abandonment
In the latest post of our ‘The Age of COVID-19’ series, Magdalena Zegarra Chiappori takes us to a shelter for abandoned older adults in Lima, Peru to consider what we can learn about resilience, vitality and existing.
Of Grandparents, Memories And The Pandemic
In this fifth post of The Age of COVID-19 series, Tannistha Samanta describes how grandparents provide a valuable intergenerational resource for living through and following the COVID-19 pandemic.
COVID-19: Bringing the social back in
In this fourth post of The Age of COVID-19 series, Tine Buffel and colleagues argue for a consideration of COVID-19 as a social phenomenon with particular challenges for older people and those living in low income
COVID-19 In The Life Of Elderly People In Rural Russia: A Crisis Of Confidence, Backed Up By Fear
This is the third post in our series, ‘The Age of COVID-19’. In it, Konstantin Galkin examines how the social and physical isolation necessitated by the pandemic give rise to an increased loss of confidence in the north-west Russian Republic of Karelia.
Of Dogs And Their Humans: Late Life In A More-Than-Human World Of The COVID-19 Pandemic
In this second post of The Age of COVID-19 series, Cristina Douglas explores how people’s social distancing and isolation has ended up extending to our non-human companions as well, and the implications of this for later life.
Ordinary People Doing Extraordinary Things: Eldercare In Wuhan Under COVID-19
In this first post in The Age of COVID-19 series, Zhe Yan explores how COVID-19 tests our collective efforts to care for the most vulnerable among us in his research on Eldercare in downtown Wuhan.
