Understanding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on well-being and virtual care for people living with dementia and care partners living in the community

The COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated public health measures that have impacted the provision of care for people living with dementia and their families. Additionally, the isolation that results from social distancing may be harming well-being for families, as formal and informal supports become less accessible. For those with living with dementia and experiencing agitation, social distancing may be even harder to maintain, or social distancing could potentially aggravate dementia-related neuropsychiatric symptoms. To understand the lived experience of social and physical distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada we remotely interviewed 21 participants who normally attend a dementia specialty clinic in Calgary, Alberta, during a period where essential businesses were closed and healthcare had abruptly transitioned to telemedicine. The impacts of the public health measures in response to the pandemic emerged in three main categories of experience: 1) personal; 2) health services; and 3) health status (of both person living with dementia and care partner). This in-depth understanding of the needs and experiences of the pandemic for people living with dementia suggests that innovative means are urgently needed to facilitate provision of remote medicine and also social interaction and integration.