‘Someone to Talk to’: A Short-Term Tele-Therapy Intervention with Older People during the Coronavirus Pandemic

Abstract

The Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) and its concomitant social isolation have affected older citizens more than any other sector of the population. This article describes the theoretical and practical principles of a short-term tele-therapy intervention model developed and implemented as a pilot project during the Coronavirus pandemic to support older residents of the community, who faced a variety of needs stemming from the lockdowns and social isolation. The intervention was developed and directed in collaboration with faculty members from a university school of social work and social workers from the municipal social services in Israel, and was conducted by first year social work students as part of their first field experience. This intervention combined Perlman’s model of problem solving, a telephone crisis intervention model and a strengths-based approach. Participants and students indicated that they benefitted from the programme and felt that the therapeutic relationships were meaningful. These outcomes and reports suggest that this type of intervention is successful and can be applied to older people during other crises or in other populations, communities and countries as part of the field experience of social work students.

Perspective: lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic concerning the resilience of the population

“…This crucial element of community support was substantially impaired during the management of the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the need for individuals to isolate and distance themselves from the people around them. This frequently led to a lack of support, as physical and emotional connections were broken, and individuals could not physically interact with others in their communities [ 9 , 36 ]. Furthermore, those that contracted COVID often felt social exclusion, as others feared any contact with them, even after they recovered from the virus [ 19 ].…”