ABSTRACT

Social isolation and loneliness are serious issues facing older adults that have been intensified during COVID-19. Through a pen pal program, we connected 69 healthcare professional students with 180 older adults in our community to help reduce social isolation and loneliness. Participants were connected through letters, e-mails, and phone calls for three months. At the end of the program, we surveyed students (response rate: 62%). Half of the students reported spending less than 20 minutes per week on the project. Of the survey respondents roughly 91% were white, 74.4% were enrolled in the College of Medicine, and 51.1% were in their first year of their respective program. Students increased their knowledge of social isolation and loneliness (p = .0001), their interest in volunteering (p = .018) and working with older adults (p = .028), and their comfort communicating with older adults (p = .002). Students reported that their wellness improved and that they practiced skills that would be used in their future careers. By providing volunteer experiences to students, we can increase their exposure to the geriatric population, hopefully increasing the number of students who enter geriatrics while simultaneously reducing social isolation and loneliness in older adults.

摘要

社会孤立和孤独是老年人面临的严重问题，在 COVID-19 期间更加严重。通过笔友计划，我们将 69 名医疗保健专业学生与社区中的 180 名老年人联系起来，以帮助减少社会孤立和孤独感。参与者通过信件、电子邮件和电话联系了三个月。在课程结束时，我们对学生进行了调查（回复率：62%）。一半的学生表示每周在该项目上花费的时间不到 20 分钟。在调查受访者中，大约 91% 是白人，74.4% 就读于医学院，51.1% 是他们各自项目的第一年。学生增加了他们对社会孤立和孤独的了解（p = .0001），他们对志愿服务的兴趣（p= .018) 和与老年人一起工作 ( p = .028)，以及他们与老年人交流的舒适度 ( p = .002)。学生们报告说他们的健康状况有所改善，并且他们练习了将在未来职业生涯中使用的技能。通过为学生提供志愿者体验，我们可以增加他们与老年人群的接触，希望增加进入老年病科的学生人数，同时减少老年人的社会孤立和孤独感。