A project developed by Primary Care professionals Parc Taulí has received the Quality improvement project award for attention in the social field awarded by the Avedis Donabedian Foundation. The award ceremony took place yesterday at the Axa Auditorium in Barcelona, in an event that included a representation of managers from Parc Taulí, headed by the general manager, Anna Aran.
The Avedis Donabedian Quality Awards recognize those institutions with a quality plan as a path to excellence and that demonstrate the results achieved in terms of improved assistance and user satisfaction.
The award-winning project, “Telematic support group for the care of home patients with feelings of loneliness and social isolation", addresses the loss of autonomy, cognitive impairment and fragile health, which can lead to a complex social situation and/or isolation. Loneliness can have negative consequences on the body, both physically and mentally. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a group telematic intervention in reducing feelings of loneliness and social isolation, as well as improving the emotional well-being of people receiving home care.
The team that has led this project is made up of the Emotional and Community Wellbeing referent and principal researcher, Laura Comendador, the social worker Gemma Font, the nurses Sílvia Robles and Sílvia Call, the director of Primary Care Parc Taulí, Miquel Cirera , and the head of Primary Care, Eva Sánchez.
The professionals set out to contribute to knowledge about improving the quality of care for people who have difficulty leaving their home for reasons of health and/or the structural conditions of their home. An intervention was carried out to integrate the promotion of healthy habits, knowledge of health resources and assets.
Online group therapy: Connected to combat loneliness and social isolation
The pilot test of the project consisted of carrying out group therapy to 11 patients, women and with an average age of 82, from the health area of Sabadell 4B who receive regular home care in the ATDOM Program by Primary Care Team of the Parc Taulí Health Corporation. These are patients with chronic, degenerative and/or disabling pathology or with unfavorable biopsychosocial characteristics: social isolation, advanced age, autonomic deficit or architectural barriers.
The online group therapy has focused on a weekly interactive session, over ten weeks, between patients and professionals, connected by tablets or mobile phones, to encourage interaction and social relations between the participants.
Findings from the pilot test show that group therapy has been beneficial for participants who have established social relationships, increasing their emotional well-being. On the other hand, the evaluation of the patients demonstrates their satisfaction with the lived experience.
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