Digital technology, health and well-being and the Covid-19 pandemic: it's time to call forward informal carers from the back of the queue

Abstract

Objective: To describe the current challenges of family caregivers during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for future digital innovations including involvement from professional nursing roles.

Data Sources: Review of recent literature from PubMed and relevant health and care reports.

Conclusion: The COVID-19 pandemic has caused monumental disruption to health care delivery and care. Caregivers face unprecedented levels of uncertainty: both for the people they care for and for their own health and well-being. Given that many carers face poor health and well-being, there is a significant risk that health inequalities will be increased by this pandemic, particularly for high-risk groups. Innovations including those supported and delivered by digital health could make a significant difference but careful planning and implementation is a necessity for widespread implementation.

Implications for Nursing: Practice Carers need to be championed in the years ahead to ensure they do not become left at the “back of the queue” for health and well-being equity. This situation has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Disruptive change to health and social care is now required where digital health solutions hold considerable promise, yet to be fully realized.

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http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/

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Identifiers

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soncn.2020.151088

Repository URI

https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/77429/