ABSTRACT

Villages are consumer-driven organizations that promote aging-in-place. This study documents the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Villages and explores variation in response by age of the organization, size of the membership, staffing model, and geographic location. In summer, 2020, we distributed an online survey to executive administrators of 286 Villages in the network. During the pandemic, over 75% of Villages were seen as more or equally valuable for members. Seventy-seven percent of Villages offered virtual socialization events. Most Villages reported a decrease in service requests, given reductions in need for transportation. New services of food and medication delivery were initiated. There is much variation between organizations, but findings suggest that Villages that are older, have more members, and bigger budgets had more capacity and cushion; and although they took a negative hit in income and participation, it was a smaller hit proportionately, compared to younger and smaller Villages. Villages have demonstrated adaptability and creativity. They kept their operations running, provided services, and offered social connection. Vulnerabilities have been exposed: memberships have dropped for many and some members have not been able to participate as before the pandemic. Many lessons learned can help future developments of the Village model.

摘要

村庄是促进就地老龄化的消费者驱动的组织。本研究记录了 COVID-19 大流行对村庄的影响，并探讨了组织年龄、成员规模、人员配备模式和地理位置的反应变化。2020 年夏天，我们向网络中 286 个村庄的行政管理人员分发了一项在线调查。在大流行期间，超过 75% 的村庄被认为对成员具有更高或同等价值。77% 的村庄提供虚拟社交活动。鉴于交通需求减少，大多数村庄报告服务请求减少。启动了新的食品和药物递送服务。组织之间存在很大差异，但调查结果表明，年龄越大的村庄，成员越多，更大的预算有更多的容量和缓冲；尽管他们在收入和参与度方面受到了负面影响，但与年轻和规模较小的村庄相比，影响较小。村庄表现出适应性和创造力。他们保持运营，提供服务并提供社交联系。漏洞已经暴露：许多会员的会员资格已经下降，一些会员无法像大流行之前那样参与。许多经验教训可以帮助村庄模式的未来发展。漏洞已经暴露：许多会员的会员资格已经下降，一些会员无法像大流行之前那样参与。许多经验教训可以帮助村庄模式的未来发展。漏洞已经暴露：许多会员的会员资格已经下降，一些会员无法像大流行之前那样参与。许多经验教训可以帮助村庄模式的未来发展。