Shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic was declared, strict visitor restrictions were issued for long-term care facilities (LTCFs). A year later, restrictions are still in place and they continue to impact family members who have limited or no in-person contact with their relative in LTCFs. The goal of this qualitative longitudinal focused ethnography was to understand the experience of family members who have a relative in a LTCF where visiting has been restricted during the pandemic. Seventeen family members participated in two interviews that were 6 months apart. Data analysis highlighted five key drivers, defined as the workforce, communication deficits, characteristics of care, public health directives, and autonomy of relative which in turn resulted in three main themes: psychological distress, surveillance, and visiting challenges. This study provides a glimpse into the difficult experiences of families with a relative residing in a LTCF in the province of New Brunswick.
La présente étude comporte trois objectifs : 1) déterminer l’état actuel des services offerts pour le maintien à domicile; 2) explorer la nature de la planification des services futurs pour le maintien à domicile; et 3) exposer les défis reliés aux services et les moyens qui s’offrent aux organismes pour que les services répondent le plus efficacement possible aux besoins des personnes âgées francophones. De type séquentiel exploratoire mixte, cette étude a permis de recueillir des données qualitatives pour bonifier des résultats quantitatifs. Quarante-neuf gestionnaires ont répondu au questionnaire en ligne et 11 entrevues ont été réalisées. Huit thèmes communs ont été dégagés en lien avec les objectifs, thèmes qui montrent une préoccupation pour la viabilité des services communautaires en maintien à domicile.
For the next 30 years, population aging will impact many facets of our society. Of specific concern is future human resources in the aging sector and related health fields. Every year, high school students make decisions related to their future careers, but few express interests in a career in aging. The goal of this study was to explore high school students' interest in and perspectives of a career in the field of aging. The specific objectives of the study were to identify high school students' perspectives of older adults, explore their level of interest in an aging-related career and understand the reasons for their level of interest for a career in aging. In this qualitative descriptive study, 41 French-speaking students in Grades 10 and 11 from an eastern Canadian province participated in a total of five focus group discussions where an educational video complemented the semi-structured interviews. Content analysis produced four common themes: perspectives of aging and older adults, exposure to aging in school, reasons for disinterest and increasing awareness and interest. Results
Continuing education is the ideal mechanism to allow retired people to maintain their autonomy and health for as long as possible. Despite the importance of education in the development of human beings, very few studies have been identified on the need for continued education in older adults. This quantitative descriptive study allowed us to better understand the interests and the needs of seniors related to continuing education in French-speaking older adults in New Brunswick (n = 408), and to identify the perceptions of participants with regard to the benefits, the challenges and the preferences of seniors for continuing education. Study results indicate that the main interests of participants were for training in technology (computers), gardening and health matters. Given the lack of research in this domain, these results will be useful for future planning of continuing education initiatives for seniors.
A scarcity of workers calls into doubt our capacity to support and care for an aging population. To gain a better understanding of the next generation of potential workers that will serve the aging population, 644 French-speaking students in grades 10 and 11 in the province of New Brunswick (Canada) were surveyed. The goals were to learn more about the attitudes, knowledge, and career interests that French-speaking, bilingual youth hold with respect to older adults. The participants’ responses indicate slightly positive attitudes toward older adults and little knowledge of this group. Results also showed that interest in a career working with older adults is primarily linked to holding positive attitudes toward them. By offering a deeper insight into young people’s perceptions of an aging population and contributing to a field lacking in research, the results of this study provide insight into measures that can be taken to ensure the future sustainability of the workforce for an aging population.
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