scholarly journals Occupational therapy, loneliness and social isolation: a thematic review of the literature

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (10) ◽  
pp. 1-23
Author(s):  
Tracy Collins ◽  
Deborah Davys ◽  
Rachel Martin ◽  
Rachel Russell ◽  
Christine Kenney

Background/Aims Loneliness and social isolation are thought to have a negative impact on health and wellbeing. There is little literature that provides an explicit focus on loneliness and social isolation in occupational therapy practice. The aim of this study was to explore themes related to loneliness and social isolation in occupational therapy-related literature and consider the implications for practice. Methods CINAHL, Medline, Pub Med, AMed, PsycINFO, TRIP Database, and Science direct and Web of science databases were used to identify articles pertaining to occupational therapy, loneliness and social isolation. Results A total of 20 articles were included and three themes were identified: loneliness and social isolation are detrimental to health and wellbeing; factors associated with increased loneliness and social isolation; factors that protect against the impact of loneliness and social isolation. Conclusions Loneliness and social isolation have a significant impact on the health and wellbeing of the people occupational therapists work with. Occupational therapy practice should include the recognition and assessment of loneliness and social isolation, and interventions to help reduce any impacts on health and wellbeing.

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (7) ◽  
pp. 3960
Author(s):  
Meng-Meng Geng ◽  
Ling-Yun He

It is a problem worth thinking about whether the government’s environmental regulation policies can meet the residents’ requirements for environmental quality, and benefit the people. The study of the public’s subjective evaluation can more intuitively judge whether the government’s environmental regulation has realized “ecological benefits for the people”. Based on the data of the Chinese General Social Survey (CGSS) in 2013, this paper studied the impact of environmental regulation and environmental awareness on environmental governance satisfaction by an ordered probit model. The study found that environmental regulation has a significant positive impact on environmental governance satisfaction, while environmental awareness has a significant negative impact on environmental governance satisfaction. We also found that when public environmental awareness is taken into account, the positive relationship between environmental regulation and environmental governance satisfaction is affected. The robustness test proved this conclusion.


2021 ◽  
Vol 75 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nuria Menéndez Álvarez ◽  
Emiliano Diez Villoria ◽  
Estíbaliz Jimenez Arberas ◽  
Ana María Castaño Pérez ◽  
Antonio León García Izquierdo

Importance: For the first time in recent history, people worldwide have faced severe restrictions in occupations because of the measures adopted by governments to contain the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis. Objective: To determine the limitations on participation of occupational therapists and occupational therapy students during “lockdown” and their impact on social determinants of health. Design: A cross-sectional, descriptive study conducted via an online survey. Participants: A total of 488 occupational therapists and occupational therapy students in North America, South America, and Europe. Outcomes and Measures: A questionnaire consisting of the World Health Organization Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health and items developed to assess the impact of lockdown on daily life was emailed to occupational therapy professional associations, organizations, and universities between April and June 2020. It was available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese and met all the parameters listed in the Declaration of Helsinki. Results: The roles and routines of people across the developed world have been affected by lockdown measures. The study shows marked differences between participants in the domains of getting along and life activities, as well as influence on the environment. Moreover, South American participants experienced these difficulties to a greater extent than European participants. Conclusions and Relevance: This study quantifies the limitations in the participation of occupational therapists and occupational therapy students and the relationship of occupation to social determinants of health. What This Article Adds: The results of this research corroborate the relationship between health and occupation and highlight elements, such as the environment and context, that are important in occupational therapy. Therapists’ ability to analyze occupation in relation to contextual and cultural factors will benefit clients.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. e30510212535
Author(s):  
Gabriel Kiaro Leite Nunes ◽  
Karinne Alice Santos de Araújo ◽  
Thais Ranielle Souza de Oliveira ◽  
Marcelina da Conceição Botelho Teixeira ◽  
Ieler Ferreira Ribeiro ◽  
...  

The COVID-19 pandemic brought about major changes in the lifestyle of the world population. Due to the lack of vaccines or a definitive treatment for disease, governments around the world have adopted social isolation and quarantine as methods to control the spread of the virus. Objective: Thus, the objective of this study was to discuss how social isolation and quarantine periods affected people's mental health and quality of life during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: An integrative literature review was carried out during the COVID-19 pandemic between March and September 2020, establishing the following guiding question: How did social isolation and quarantine affect the mental health and quality of life of the population in the COVID-19 pandemic? Results: The final sample consisted of nineteen (19) articles, two (2) addressed depression during the pandemic period, three (3) presented the pandemic and the relationship with sociodemographic aspects, five (5) analyzed mental health in the pandemic, four (4) reported the impact of COVID-19 on the population's style and quality of life and the last five (5) demonstrated the quality of human relationships and emotional aspects in the face of the pandemic. Conclusion: It was demonstrated that isolation and the quarantine period had a negative impact on the population's quality of life and long-term mental health.


Author(s):  
Muammar

The impact of globalization has penetrated throughout the civilization of the nations of the world, running so fast. Especially very influential on changes in various lines of life. Related to this is the issue of increasing narcotics abuse and narcotics illicit trafficking which has created conditions that have hindered the development process and weakened civilization. Eradication of narcotics distribution is a national problem, because it has a negative impact that can damage and threaten the lives of the people, nation and state and can hamper the national development process. The rise of narcotics abuse does not only occur in big cities, but has reached small cities in all ten regions of the Republic of Indonesia, including East Aceh Regency. The increasingly diverse lifestyle of the people due to the influence of globalization also contributes to the increasing circulation of narcotics in East Aceh District. This certainly must receive serious attention, because if we look at what is happening in East Aceh District and several other regions in Indonesia, the crime of narcotics distribution from time to time always increases which in the end is increasingly unsettling the community, so before these things increase In East Aceh District, an effective solution must be found to eradicate it. Factors that cause a person to commit a narcotics crime in East Aceh Regency are due to economic factors where a person needs money to live and the difficulty of getting work, family environmental factors, social environmental factors and availability / lack of supervision factors. Efforts in tackling narcotics circulation in East Aceh district involve many parties, including: firstly, pre-emptive efforts by providing counseling in the community and schools about narcotics carried out by the police in tackling narcotics crime in East Aceh District. Second, preventive measures (prevention) by conducting raids and patrols routinely, providing oversight of the association and positive activities carried out by the police, prosecutors, religious leaders, community leaders and youth organizations. The third repressive effort (action) which aims to provide a deterrent effect on the perpetrators of drug trafficking crimes involving all law enforcement officials ranging from the Police, Attorney and District Courts and Detention Houses.Keywords: Crimonology, Narcotics Circulation. 


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 19-27
Author(s):  
Saifuddin Soz ◽  
Dhananjay Mankar

Climate change is already bringing tremendous influence on people’s lives, particularly the underprivileged. It’s already visible in a variety of ways. In recent decades, Asia and the Pacific have seen consistent warming trends as well as more frequent and powerful extreme weather events such as droughts, cyclones, floods, and hailstorms. This study was done in Ajmer District of Rajasthan, to find out the climate variation in the last 10 years. The study describes the effects due to climate change on the livelihoods of the people, so a descriptive research design was used for the study to find out the impact of climate change on rural livelihood in central Rajasthan. The study is based on a large representative of sample, quantitative data was collected to gain an idea of the impact on the livelihoods due to climate change at the household level. It shows the negative impact of climate change on rural livelihood which forced the people to change their livelihood directly or indirectly. It was found that climate change had an impact on people’s lives and people do understand the variation in climate change in terms of changes in the weather, unseasonal rain, and drought.


Author(s):  
Giovana Z. Mazo ◽  
Felipe Fank ◽  
Pedro S. Franco ◽  
Bruna da Silva Vieira Capanema ◽  
Franciele da Silva Pereira

The objective was to analyze the impact of social isolation on moderate physical activity and factors associated with sedentary behavior of older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. This was a cross-sectional study involving 111 older adults (aged 71.0 ± 6.87 years). The data were collected at two time points: in November 2019 and in June 2020. There was a decline in moderate physical activity when the minutes/week were compared before and during social isolation (p < .001). Sedentary behavior was associated with the condition of living alone. Older adults who lived alone were 3.29 times more likely to spend 4 hr or more in sedentary behavior than those who lived with a partner (95% confidence interval [1.01, 10.74]). Government agencies must establish PA-related health promotion strategies, especially in developing and low-income countries. Therefore, home exercises need to be encouraged to prevent the consequences of this pandemic period.


BMJ Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. e021046 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caryl Beynon ◽  
David Bayliss ◽  
Jenny Mason ◽  
Kate Sweeney ◽  
Clare Perkins ◽  
...  

ObjectivesTo estimate the prevalence, the frequency and the perpetrators of alcohol-related harm to others (AHTO) and identify factors associated with experiencing harm and aggressive harm.DesignCross-sectional survey.SettingEngland.ParticipantsAdults (general population) aged 16 and over.Outcome measuresPercentage of respondents who experienced harm. Socioeconomic and demographic factors associated with the outcomes. Outcomes were (1) experienced harm/did not experience harm and (2) experienced aggressive harm (physically threatened, physically hurt and forced/pressured into something sexual)/did not experience an aggressive harm (no aggressive harm plus no harm at all).ResultsData to support a response rate calculation were not collected; 96.3% of people surveyed completed the AHTO questions. The weighted sample was 4874; 20.1% (95% CI 18.9 to 21.4, N=980) reported experiencing harm in the previous 12 months and 4.6% (95% CI 4.0 to 5.4, N=225) reported experiencing an aggressive harm. Friends and strangers were the dominant perpetrators. Most harms (74.8%) occurred less than monthly. Factors associated with experiencing harm were: younger age (p<0.001), drinking harmfully/hazardously (p<0.001), white British (p<0.001 compared to other white groups and Asian groups and p=0.017 compared to black groups), having a disability (p<0.001), being educated (p<0.001 compared to no education) and living in private rented accommodation (p=0.004 compared with owned outright). Being in the family stage of life (defined as having children in the household) had significantly lower odds of harm (p=0.006 compared to being single), as did being retired (p<0.001 compared to being employed). Factors associated with experiencing an aggressive harm were similar.ConclusionsThis exploratory study, using data collected through the Alcohol Toolkit Survey, shows that AHTO affects 20.1% of the population of England. Even apparently minor harms, like being kept awake, can have a negative impact on health, while aggressive harms are clearly of concern. Using a standard methodology to measure harm across studies would be advantageous. Policies that focus on alcohol must take into consideration the impact of drinking on those other than the drinker.


2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 204-223 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joan Gaynor Mowat

The poverty-related attainment gap is an internationally recognised problem. There is growing recognition that it cannot either be understood or addressed without taking cognisance of children’s mental health and wellbeing. The focus of this conceptual article is to examine the impact of social inequality and poverty on the mental health and wellbeing and attainment of children and young people in Scotland through the lens of resilience. While not a ‘state of the art’ literature review, a systematic approach was adopted in the selection of the literature and in the identification of themes to emerge from it. A range of risk and protective factors at the individual, social, societal and political levels emerged as impacting on the mental health and wellbeing and attainment of children living in poverty, and three important mediating variables are the negative impact of social stratification and adverse childhood experiences and the positive impact of a supportive adult. Schools alone cannot solve the problem. The findings revealed that there is a need to build a strong infrastructure around families and schools and to examine how economic, social, health and educational policy interact with each other as a starting point in addressing the problem, supported by inter-disciplinary research.


2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (11) ◽  
pp. 69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maram Banakhar

Objective: This review was conducted to investigate the impact of applying 12-hour shifts in comparison to 8-hour shifts on nurses’ health wellbeing and job satisfaction.Methods: MEDLINE, CINHALE, PsycINFO, EMBASE, Web of Science, and SCOPUS databases were searched, covering the period between 1980 to 2017. Studies were included if they concerned nurses working for 12-hour shifts in  comparison to 8-hour shifts in hospital settings, based on observational/surveys studies.Results: In the yielded 12 studies, 3 studies reported that 12-hour shifts had an impact on nurses’ health and wellbeing, such as cognitive anxiety, musculo-skeletal disorders, sleep disturbance, and role stress; however, there was no significant difference between 12- and 8-hour shifts with digestive and cardiovascular disorders, psychological ill health, and somatic anxiety. Of the 4 studies measuring the impact of 12-hour shifts on fatigue, three studies showed that the nurses experienced more fatigue in the 12-hour shifts in comparison to 8-hour shifts; nevertheless, one study did not find a significant difference in fatigue and critical thinking performances between 12- and 8-hour shifts. Nine of the 12 studies measured job satisfaction in 12- and 8-hour shifts, 5 studies showed a greater dissatisfaction regarding 12-hour shifts, while 3 studies found that the nurses were more satisfied with 12-hour shifts than with 8-hour shifts; but one study pointed out that there was a difference between the two shifts considering pay and professional status.Conclusions: The findings of the review suggest that 12-hour shifts resulted in negative health concerns and job dissatisfaction; however, there is a need for more empirical evidence to support this.


2007 ◽  
Vol 70 (7) ◽  
pp. 284-291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clare Hocking

This article draws on an analysis of the British Journal of Occupational Therapy and texts published in England from 1938 to 1951 to describe the ways in which early British occupational therapists perceived themselves and their practice. To give context, the impact of World War II, the medical advances of the time and the profession's overarching goals are outlined. Three themes are presented. First, therapists' use of craft activities, the knowledge that they held about the therapeutic application of craft and the demands of using craft activities in hospital environments are described. The therapists' efforts to articulate a theory base and to demonstrate the efficacy of occupational therapy are the second and third themes. The analysis reveals the circumstances that brought about a shift from craft activities to rehabilitation and workplace technologies, and how the diversional activities that characterised practice in mental health and long-stay physical settings lost ground to remedial and vocational outcomes.


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