The impact of COVID-19 on health of the older persons in Bangladesh

Abstract

The COVID-19 is impacting the health of the population, including older persons. Available evidence shows that older people are highly vulnerable and more likely to have adverse health outcomes. In Bangladesh, the older population is rapidly increasing, living with various disadvantaged socio-economic conditions, including inadequate access and healthcare services. These disparities are likely to increase during the COVID-19, resulting in high morbidity and mortality among them. Thus, we have examined the health vulnerabilities of older persons due to the COVID-19 pandemic using content analysis. We have analyzed 102 content collected from various online and printed articles published in newspapers, journals, and other relevant sources. The study has found increased health risks, deteriorated mental health, and poor health system functioning during the pandemic and its impact on older persons in Bangladesh. Strengthening health systems through an integrated model with capacity development of existing health care providers to deal with elderly health problems, including mental health and psychosocial wellbeing; promoting preventive measures, facilitating access to healthcare is required. Bangladesh can learn the Chinese experience to adopt innovative, specialized, and advanced systems to efficiently fight against the COVID-19.

Knowledge, Attitude and Practices Toward Coronavirus Disease (COVID- 19) in Southeast and South Asia: A Mixed Study Design Approach

“…A study conducted in Saudi Arabia also showed that older individuals had higher knowledge about COVID-19 (59). According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and some existing literatures, older society is at highest risk of contracting this virus, and more than 95% of the related death is attributed to this age group (60)(61)(62). This may be because older people are more likely to catch viruses or diseases such as COVID-19 due to poor immunity, so they could be more cautious about COVID-19.…”

COVID-19 related anxiety and its associated factors: a cross-sectional study on older adults in Bangladesh

“…Mental health is a severely neglected issue in Bangladesh, specifically among older people. The pandemic disrupted the already existing inadequate mental health services [27], especially among older people [28], increasing their vulnerability to anxiety and depression. Evidence indicates that the COVID-19 pandemic and its impacts on Bangladeshi older people have not ended yet due to several factors, including but not limited to, inadequate and untimely measures for controlling coronavirus infection [7], low vaccination coverage among older people [29], irregularities, and limited preparedness of the health sector [30].…”

Role of women's empowerment in determining fertility and reproductive health in Bangladesh: a systematic literature review

“…During the initial literature search, we found that there were very few studies discussing women's empowerment–related issues in FRH control in Bangladesh. 17 , 38 , 45 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 57 Most of these studies were cross-sectional in nature, and we did not find any review-based studies on this topic. As a first initiative to address all these issues, we reviewed several Bangladesh-based articles from different time periods to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the relationship between women's empowerment and fertility and reproductive behavior.…”

“… 65 , 66 , 67 Research suggests that higher levels of education are associated with a lower number of children and reduced progression to parity-specific fertility when compared with women with lower education levels. 48 A study conducted by Islam and Nesa 52 in 2009 revealed that across all education levels, rural areas had higher TFRs and total marital fertility rates than urban areas. Similarly, a study by Haq et al 54 in 2019 found that women who resided in rural areas had a higher tendency to have more children than their urban counterparts.…”