Ethical Issues in Long-term Care in Low-, Middle- and High-Income Countries During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Preet Gandhi; Angel Petropanagos; Andreea Popescu; Darren Bugaresti; Theresa Nitti; Nipa Chauhan; Paula Chidwick; Jill Oliver

doi:10.1177/23337214221146660

Ethical Issues in Long-term Care in Low-, Middle- and High-Income Countries During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Gerontol Geriatr Med. 2023 Jan 10:9:23337214221146660. doi: 10.1177/23337214221146660. eCollection 2023 Jan-Dec.

Authors

Preet Gandhi¹, Angel Petropanagos², Andreea Popescu², Darren Bugaresti², Theresa Nitti², Nipa Chauhan², Paula Chidwick², Jill Oliver²

Affiliations

¹ University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
² William Osler Health System, Brampton, ON, Canada.

Abstract

Long-term care (LTC) centers experienced an unprecedented emergency involving exponential mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic. Individuals residing in long-term care were particularly vulnerable to the effects of COVID-19, placing residents, staff, families, and organizations in a precarious position. Complex issues surrounding how to manage vulnerable populations during the pandemic have highlighted the importance of gathering information on ethical issues that require effective policy and decision-making. This project sought to identify the ethical issues faced in long-term care by residents, families, staff, and organizations from stakeholders themselves. A total of 305 participants from 45 countries responded, highlighting numerous ethical issues in long-term care during COVID-19. While numerous issues were mentioned, there was an overlap in the themes of responses between stakeholders. Visitation, isolation, harm, staff well-being, and the overall enforcement of policies during the pandemic represented the most often discussed issues. As a preliminary study of this issue, future research is necessary in order to effectively guide pandemic policymaking moving forward.

Keywords: COVID-19; ethical issues; long-term care; residents; visitation.