New research highlights effectiveness of telephone well-being checks for rural older adults

Researchers in West Virginia describe their pilot model for connecting with older adults by phone in the pandemic. The team interviewed 124 community-dwelling residents, aged 75 or older, across four rural West Virginia counties about their wellbeing and material needs. The authors found that 97 percent of interviewees expressed preference for telephone contact over other methods. Further, 14 percent of calls resulted in an intervention by the research team, including helping interviewees schedule emergency home repairs, supplying medical equipment, or scheduling urgent health care appointments, with the greatest need for support among the oldest residents and those with two or more chronic conditions. The authors suggest that systematically telephoning rural older adults is an effective and low-cost outreach strategy for service providers. #covid-19 #rural