Older adults’ experiences of restrictive measures during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in Southern Switzerland: evidence from the Corona Immunitas Ticino study

Maciariello, David and Corna, Laurie and Amati, Rebecca and Albanese, Emiliano and Cavalli, Stefano (2022) Older adults’ experiences of restrictive measures during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in Southern Switzerland: evidence from the Corona Immunitas Ticino study. In: 19° Biennial European Society for Health and Medical Sociology Conference, 26.08.2022, Forlì, Italia. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

From the outset of the pandemic, age was identified as an important risk factor for serious disease and mortality in individuals infected with SARS-CoV-2. Federal authorities in Switzerland were swift toimplement numerous public health preventive measures to curb the spread of the virus, while leaving open the possibility for individual cantons to implement even stricter measures according to their specific situations. Canton Ticino, a southern canton bordering the hard-hit Lombardy region legislated additional measures, some of which specifically targeted adults 65 years and older (e.g., an initial ban on grocery shopping followed by recommendations to shop during designated hours). To date, we know relatively little about how older adults perceived and experienced the introduction of these measures and we explore this issue in a large, representative sample of community-dwelling older adults resident in Ticino. We use data from Corona Immunitas Ticino, a prospective cohort study launched in September 2020. Participants (n=818, mean age=73) responded to closed and open-ended questions online or by telephone interview between October 2020 and February 2021. We analyzed responses to open-ended questions about the introduction of the measures using an inductive approach. Participants’ responses encompassed evaluations of their experience of the measures, reactions to them and associated emotions and opinions. At the individual level, 45% had a mostly positive experience, 29% had a mostly negative experience, while 10% identified positive and negative aspects and 16% reported neither. We then ascertained if particular social groups were more or less likely to have experienced the measures favorably or negatively, with a view to identify specific subgroups at risk of negative sequelae following the implementation of age-based policies.

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