Visitor restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic: An ethical case study

Abstract

To prevent and reduce the transmission of the coronavirus to vulnerable populations, the World Health Organization recommended the restriction of visitors to nursing homes. It was recognised that such restrictions could have profound impact on residents and their families. Nonetheless, these measures were strictly imposed over a prolonged period in many countries; impeding families from remaining involved in their relatives’ care and diluting the meaningful connections for residents with society. It is timely to explore the impact of public health measures on people living in nursing homes from an ethical perspective. In order to foreground the ethical dimensions of the implications of visitor restrictions in nursing homes, we compiled an ethical case that reflects some recent experiences of nursing homes residents and their families, in the Irish Republic. We describe a series of events encountered by a woman and her family during the first wave of the pandemic in 2020 and we deploy an ethical decision-making tool to guide and structure our analysis. Our case analysis draws attention to ethical principles that are relevant to explicating the ethical duties and obligations that arise in relation to the interests, well-being, and safety of residents and their families, as well as nursing home staff and the wider community during a pandemic. These include the right of autonomy, trust, minimising harm, and proportionality. We conclude that a number of different strategies should be adopted by nursing homes and relevant regulatory bodies. This includes honest, regular communication between the nursing home staff, the resident and their family. Central to communications is the resident’s wishes, their current clinical status and the all-important wider public health obligations. National strategies include mass vaccination, the timely provision of guidance documents and interventions from regulatory bodies that are patient-centred, adaptable, and cost effective.

The Experience of COVID-19 Visitor Restrictions among Families of People Living in Long-Term Residential Care Facilities during the First Wave of the Pandemic in Ireland

“…This international literature does not support blanket bans on visitation and the removal of residents’ right to face-to-face meetings should be a last resort. Individual cases can be complex and ethically challenging [ 44 ], and residents and their families should receive regular consultation during the planning process [ 27 , 28 , 41 , 42 ].…”

Ethical dilemmas experienced by nurses while caring for patients during the COVID‐19 pandemic: An integrative review of qualitative studies

“…It is important to find imaginative solutions that protect the community and at the same time do not harm the psychosocial health of the patient and their loved ones (Morley et al, 2020 ). Rights, such as autonomy, trust, minimizing harm and proportionality must be considered when adopting strategies concerning hospital and nursing home visitors during the COVID‐19 pandemic (Hartigan et al, 2021 ).…”

Ethical challenges experienced by care home staff during COVID-19 pandemic

“… 17 Proportionality suggests that measures that restrict individual liberty should be proportionate to the intended good. 7 , 45 Instead of confining care home residents within a limited space, various activities that might support them to meaningfully engage with others should be organized to reduce their sense of loneliness and abandonment during a pandemic. 46 , 47 Flexibility in family visitation policy should also be considered in terms of proportionality if the benefits would outweigh the harms.…”

“… 12 Hartigan et al (2021) conducted an in-depth ethical analysis regarding visitation restriction during the pandemic and illustrated how care providers can plan for care practices in a balanced and logical manner through the lens of ethical values. 7 …”