Caregiving during the COVID-19 and elder abuse in Africa: Research and policy directions

Start Date

26-3-2021 5:00 PM

End Date

26-3-2021 5:15 PM

Description

Given how COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted every aspect of our lives, this paper aims to discuss potential mistreatment of older adults by informal caregivers during the COVID-19 outbreak in Africa and possible ways to help address it. The unprecedented global COVID-19 crisis has distorted informal caregivers’ roles. And as a consequence, informal caregivers are required to adjust their roles in order to reduce caregiving burden and stress. More importantly, the COVID-19 crisis has caused challenging situations which might potentially cause family caregivers to abuse their older relatives. Despite this, research on this subject, up to this point, remains nascent in Africa. Researchers also have failed to examine the pattern of the increasing reports of abuse, violence and discrimination against older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic in Africa. This paper, therefore, calls for a deeper research on the dynamics and the immediate and long-term impacts of abuse against older adults in Africa.

Recommended Citation

Arthur-Holmes, F. (2021, March). Caregiving during the COVID-19 and elder abuse in Africa: Research and policy directions. Presented at the Postgraduate Conference on Interdisciplinary Learning: Re-Imagining Postgraduate Studies in the 21st Century and Beyond. Lingnan University, Hong Kong.

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Mar 26th, 5:00 PM Mar 26th, 5:15 PM

Caregiving during the COVID-19 and elder abuse in Africa: Research and policy directions

Given how COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted every aspect of our lives, this paper aims to discuss potential mistreatment of older adults by informal caregivers during the COVID-19 outbreak in Africa and possible ways to help address it. The unprecedented global COVID-19 crisis has distorted informal caregivers’ roles. And as a consequence, informal caregivers are required to adjust their roles in order to reduce caregiving burden and stress. More importantly, the COVID-19 crisis has caused challenging situations which might potentially cause family caregivers to abuse their older relatives. Despite this, research on this subject, up to this point, remains nascent in Africa. Researchers also have failed to examine the pattern of the increasing reports of abuse, violence and discrimination against older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic in Africa. This paper, therefore, calls for a deeper research on the dynamics and the immediate and long-term impacts of abuse against older adults in Africa.