ENFRENTAMENTO A PANDEMIA DE COVID-19 POR PARTE DOS GESTORES DE INSTITUIÇÕES DE LONGA PERMANÊNCIA PARA IDOSOS NA AMÉRICA LATINA

Patrick Alexander Wachholz; Alessandro Ferrari Jacinto; Ruth Caldeira de  Melo; José Luis  Dinamarca-Montecinos; Paulo José Fortes  Villas Boas

doi:10.1590/SciELOPreprints.986

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Patrick Alexander Wachholz Botucatu Medical School - São Paulo State University (UNESP)
Alessandro Ferrari Jacinto Disciplina de Geriatria e Gerontologia, Universidade Federal de São Paulo - UNIFESP, São Paulo, Brasil https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1977-5880
Ruth Caldeira de Melo Escola de Artes, Ciências e Humanidades da Universidade de São Paulo - EACH-USP, São Paulo, Brasil. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9713-8617
José Luis Dinamarca-Montecinos Cátedra de Traumatologia y Ortopedia, Cátedra de Medicina Interna, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0186-5992
Paulo José Fortes Villas Boas Departamento de Clínica Médica, Faculdade de Medicina de Botucatu, Universidade Estadual Paulista - UNESP https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9876-3222

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1590/SciELOPreprints.986

Keywords:

COVID-19, aged, Long stay Institution for the Elderly

Abstract

Introduction: Few information is available on coping and mitigating COVID-19 in long-term care services for older people (ILPIs) in Latin America (LA).

Objectives: To describe how ILPI managers in LA planned and adapted their coping routines to the COVID-19 pandemic, and whether they were able to comply with the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO).

Methodology: Cross-sectional study, based on the application of an online survey aimed at LTCF managers in LA. A 46-question questionnaire (adopting WHO principles) was sent to participants. Descriptive statistics was used to summarize the data.

Results: 23 managers answered the survey (excluding Brazilian respondents), totaling 874 older person (5 -270); a questionnaire was excluded due to lack of answers. Fourteen ILPIs (63.60%) were private for profit. The rate of adherence to WHO recommendations was over 70% for most issues. A little more than half of the institutions developed a strategic coping plan, or identified strategies to deal with deaths from suspected cases. Difficulty in acquiring personal protective equipment was reported by 59.10% of the investigated LTCIs. The testing capacity for SARS-Cov-2 has been reduced (36.36% had no test).

Conclusions: The rate of adherence to the recommendations proposed by WHO for coping with COVID-19 was over 70% for most investigated LTCIs. Strategic coping plans were developed in just over half of the institutions. The availability of PPE and the testing capacity for SARS-Cov-2 proved to be quite unsatisfactory.