The Effects of COVID-19 on Depressed Older Adults: Article Published in American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry

Led by Megan Hamm, Ph.D., the OPTIMUM team conducted a multi-city qualitative study to explore how COVID-19 and its consequences have affected older adults. The team interviewed 73 individuals already enrolled in the OPTIMUM study using qualitative interviewing methods to learn about how the global pandemic is affecting their emotional health.

Five major themes emerged: First, we found out that the older we spoke to adults were more concerned about the risk of contracting the virus than the risks of isolation. They exhibited resilience to the stress and isolation of physical distancing, and most were not isolated socially, with virtual contact with friends and family. However, their quality of life was lower, and they expressed concern that their mental health will suffer with continued physical distancing. Although this was not specifically mentioned, many of the participants spontaneously expressed outraged by an inadequate governmental response to the pandemic. Surprisingly, depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation symptom scores did not differ from scores before the pandemic.

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