COLUMBUS, Ind. — Being ‘home alone’ can spotlight a bad drama for senior residents.
And leaders at the nonprofit Mill Race Center, the Columbus facility for active residents age 50-plus, want to find responsible ways to get isolated seniors amid the COVID-19 pandemic safely into activities and programs — all to build relationships for their emotional and physical well being.
Those leaders say their own anecdotal evidence and national statistics show that extended isolation and loneliness are linked with major health risks — a 50 percent increased risk of dementia, 32 percent increased risk of stroke, and a nearly fourfold risk of early death for patients with heart disease, according to the American Association of Retired Persons.
AARP’s research also shows that social engagement can reduce the risk of early death by 50 percent.
Locally, Mill Race staff became alarmed when they noted, for example, that they had five member deaths — a figure that is regularly tracked — in May/June 2019, but 20 deaths during that same time this year when the center and a range of other avenues for activities closed.
They also noted that they recorded five member deaths in July/August 2019, but 18 member deaths in that same period this year amid COVID-19 limitations.
“By that time, they had been isolated for two months,” Mustard said. “And we didn’t realize that the impact would be that noticeable that quickly.”
For more on this story, see Thursday’s Republic.
