Impact of COVID-19 on the Health and Well-being of Informal Caregivers of People with Dementia: A Rapid Systematic Review

Abstract

Background: In December 2019, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), or COVID-19, raised worldwide concern. Since then, the COVID-19 pandemic has negatively influenced health and wellness across the globe and caused nearly three million deaths. This study focuses on informal caregivers of people with dementia, a disease that affects about 50 million older adults worldwide and requires much caregiving support. Objective: Examine the current literature on the impact of COVID-19 on the health and well-being of informal caregivers for people with dementia. Method: This rapid review was conducted across five electronic databases for quantitative and qualitative articles published through March 15, 2021. Results: The 10 studies included in this review reported quantitative descriptive data from across the globe; however, no studies existed from the U.S. or East Asia countries. All of the studies examined the psychological rather than physical impact of COVID-19 and highlighted risk and protective factors in the areas of psychosocial (resilience, neuropsychiatric, and social isolation), sociodemographic (gender and education), and environmental (home confinement, living arrangement, and dementia stage). Conclusion: COVID-19 has had a considerable negative impact on the psychological well-being of informal caregivers of people with dementia, namely causing more depression and anxiety than pre-pandemic.

Factors associated with general well-being among Lebanese adults: The role of emotional intelligence, fear of COVID, healthy lifestyle, coping strategies (avoidance and approach)

“…In fact, the action of caregiving and taking care of a family member can be considered as a stressor that might impact GWB (Thomas et al, 2017); this aligns with the results of another study that indicated that caregivers manifested a lower mental health and reported a lower level of wellbeing compared to non-caregivers (Berglund et al, 2015). More specifically, during the COVID-19 pandemic, an impact was shown on the GWB of caregivers, which caused significantly higher levels of anxiety and depression than before the pandemic (Hughes et al, 2021).…”

The Experiences of People with Dementia and Informal Carers Related to the Closure of Social and Medical Services in Poland during the COVID-19 Pandemic—A Qualitative Study

“…Already a few years ago, researchers identified informal carers of people with dementia as the invisible second patients [ 27 ] who experience a high level of burden, organizational strain, psychological and physical morbidity and social isolation [ 27 , 28 ]. In the face of an ongoing pandemic, previously recognized issues seem to be escalated [ 25 ]. The frequently high levels of stress associated with caring for a person living with dementia [ 28 ] have been intensified even further by the pandemic and have negatively influenced carers’ overall psychological well-being [ 8 , 22 , 29 ].…”

“…Emerging evidence suggests that constraints in social participation of a person with dementia and limited access to social services have affected the entire family system, particularly the primary informal carer [22,23], who is usually left alone with their caring responsibilities due to the reduction in all forms of support they previously obtained [24]. Research conducted since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic [25] appears to reinforce the finding from pre-pandemic research on informal carers' burden [26]. Already a few years ago, researchers identified informal carers of people with dementia as the invisible second patients [27] who experience a high level of burden, organizational strain, psychological and physical morbidity and social isolation [27,28].…”

Effects of e-Health Training and Social Support Interventions for Informal Caregivers of People with Dementia—A Narrative Review

“…This SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, and the lockdown associated with it in several countries (e.g., Spain), besides having a negative impact on the psychological well-being of ICs [24][25][26], has exposed the shortcomings that exist in healthcare structures such as Alzheimer associations and day care and residential centers, revealing that these are insufficient for tackling a situation that requires providing greater protection to the most vulnerable elderly [27]. In line with the third goal of the UN's Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development "Ensure healthy lives and promote wellbeing for all at all ages" [28], we need to develop strategies to adapt and strengthen social and healthcare for the vulnerable elderly population such as people with dementia (PwD) and their ICs.…”