AccScience Publishing / GHES / Online First / DOI: 10.36922/ghes.3193
PERSPECTIVE ARTICLE

How to minimize the impact of a pandemic on depression in older adults in the future

Celso Silva1* Mónica Tomaz2 Liliana Sousa3 Rogério Ferreira1 César Fonseca4
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1 School of Health, Polytechnic Institute of Beja, Beja, Portugal
2 School of Management, Hospitality and Tourism, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal
3 Local Health Unit, Alentejo Central, EPE, Évora, Portugal
4 Department of Nursing, University of Évora, Évora, Portugal
Submitted: 18 March 2024 | Accepted: 9 May 2024 | Published: 23 September 2024
© 2024 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
Abstract

Depression is a common mental illness that affects a significant number of older adults. Recently, we saw a considerable increase in the prevalence of depression during the COVID-19 pandemic. Studies have been able to discover many determinants of pandemic-related depression, which will aid in defining health policies to mitigate depressive symptoms during future pandemics. Thus, based on existing knowledge of the key factors contributing to the development of depression among older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic, our article aims to precisely reflect on and consider health policies in need of development. We hope these perspectives can help reduce the impact of future pandemics on the development of depressive symptoms.

Keywords
Pandemic
Older adults
Depression
Future situation
Minimizing impact
Funding
None.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare they have no competing interests.
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