Patient isolation during Sars-CoV-2 pandemic: the caregivers' experience in a neuro-rehabilitation unit

Abstract

During the Covid-19 pandemic, caregiver visits were suspended in many health care facilities and, even today, limitations remain. These restrictions have impacted not only the patients but also caregivers. To explore the life experience of caregivers of hospitalized patients, during the pandemic and the impact of visit limitations in a rehabilitation unit. An exploratory qualitative study was conducted, following the COREQ guidelines. Caregivers of inpatients were purposefully sampled and interviewed, until data saturation. A qualitative thematic analysis with an inductive approach was performed. Fifteen caregivers were interviewed. The themes emerged were: 1. perception of the illness as a sudden change; 2. concerns for their loved one (i.e. the loneliness or the suffering); 3. critical (difficult to organize and perceived too short) and positive aspects of the visits; 4. barriers to communication (for example, masks when in presence; or the difficult use of technologies by elders); 5. patient's protection and support (thinking that the relative's presence may improve the rehabilitation); 6. emotions (from discouragement when visits were not allowed, to joy when meeting their loved one). Caregivers experienced uncertainty, worry, anxiety, fear, and lack of understanding of their loved one's clinical situation. Alternatives to the visits or the visits with physical barriers were helpful but not always effective.