Older People And COVID-19: Isolation, Risk And Ageism

A recent paper by Joanne Brooke and Debra Jackson published in the Journal of Clinical Nursing discusses how are at a higher risk of more serious and possibly fatal illness associated with COVID‐19.

Mortality data from Oxford COVID‐19 Evidence Service (25/3/20) indicates a risk of mortality of 3.6% for people in their 60s, which increases to 8.0% and 14.8% for people in their 70s and over 80s. Therefore, the global recommendation for older populations includes social isolation, which involves staying at home and avoiding contact with other people, possibly for an extended period of time, currently estimated to be between three and four months. Older populations in this current context refers to people over 70 years, and 50 years in some particularly vulnerable Indigenous populations.

The paper examines explicit ageism associated with COVID-19 and can be read here.