How Well Did the Healthcare System Respond to the Healthcare Needs of Older People with and without Dementia during the COVID-19 Pandemic? The Perception of Healthcare Providers and Older People from the SI4CARE Project in the ADRION Region
Stella Fragkiadaki,
Dionysia Kontaxopoulou,
Evangelia Stanitsa,
Efthalia Angelopoulou,
Dimosthenis Pavlou,
Darja Šemrov,
Simon Colnar,
Mitja Lustrek,
Bojan Blažica,
Inga Vučica,
Roberta Matković,
Katarina Vukojevic,
Ana Jelicic,
Pietro Hiram Guzzi,
Vlatka Martinović,
Amina Pekmez Medina,
Guido Piccoli,
Margherita Menon,
Srdjan Kozetinac,
Miodrag Miljković,
Chrysanthi Kiskini,
Themis Kokorotsikos,
Vasiliki Zilidou,
Ivan Radević,
John Papatriantafyllou,
Eleftherios Thireos,
Agis Tsouros,
Vlado Dimovski,
Sokratis G. Papageorgiou
Affiliations
Stella Fragkiadaki
1st Department of Neurology, Aiginition University Hospital, Vasilissis Sofias Street 72-74, 11528 Athens, Greece
Dionysia Kontaxopoulou
1st Department of Neurology, Aiginition University Hospital, Vasilissis Sofias Street 72-74, 11528 Athens, Greece
Evangelia Stanitsa
1st Department of Neurology, Aiginition University Hospital, Vasilissis Sofias Street 72-74, 11528 Athens, Greece
Efthalia Angelopoulou
1st Department of Neurology, Aiginition University Hospital, Vasilissis Sofias Street 72-74, 11528 Athens, Greece
Dimosthenis Pavlou
School of Topography and Geoinformatics, University of West Attica, Ag. Spyridonos Str., 12243 Aigalew, Greece
Darja Šemrov
Faculty of Civic and Geodetic Engineering, University of Ljubljana Jamova cesta 2, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Simon Colnar
School of Economics and Business, University of Ljubljana Kardeljeva ploščad 17, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Mitja Lustrek
Department of Intelligent Systems, Jožef Stefan Institute, Jamova cesta 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Bojan Blažica
Computer Systems Department, Jožef Stefan Institute, Jamova cesta 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Inga Vučica
Department of Gerontology, Teaching Institute for Public Health of Split and Dalmatian County, Vukovarska 46, 21000 Split, Croatia
Roberta Matković
Department for Research Data Collecting and Analysis, Teaching Institute for Public Health of Split and Dalmatian County, Vukovarska 46, 21000 Split, Croatia
Katarina Vukojevic
Department of Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, University of Split School of Medicine, Šoltanska ul. 2, 21000 Split, Croatia
Ana Jelicic
Department of Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, University of Split School of Medicine, Šoltanska ul. 2, 21000 Split, Croatia
Pietro Hiram Guzzi
Municipality of Miglierina, Street B. Telesio 88040, Italy and University of Catanzaro, viale Europa, 88100 Catanzaro, Italy
Vlatka Martinović
Faculty of Medicine, University Hospital Mostar, 88000 Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Amina Pekmez Medina
Health Insurance and Reinsurance Fund of Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Trg Heroja 14, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Guido Piccoli
ALOT, SI4CARE-TEAM Street Cipro, 16, 25124 Brescia, Italy
Margherita Menon
ALOT, SI4CARE-TEAM Street Cipro, 16, 25124 Brescia, Italy
Srdjan Kozetinac
Special Hospital Merkur, Cara Dusana 3, 36210 Vrnjaka Banja, Serbia
Miodrag Miljković
Special Hospital Merkur, Cara Dusana 3, 36210 Vrnjaka Banja, Serbia
Chrysanthi Kiskini
Department of European Union, Projects of Regional Development Fund of Central Macedonia, Vas. Olgas 198, 54 655, Thessaloniki, Greece
Themis Kokorotsikos
Department of European Union, Projects of Regional Development Fund of Central Macedonia, Vas. Olgas 198, 54 655, Thessaloniki, Greece
Vasiliki Zilidou
Lab of Medical Physics & Digital Innovation, and Thessaloniki Active & Healthy Ageing Living Lab, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
Ivan Radević
Faculty of Economics, University of Montenegro, 37 Bulevar Jovana Tomaševića, 81000 Podgorica, Montenegro
John Papatriantafyllou
1st Department of Neurology, Aiginition University Hospital, Vasilissis Sofias Street 72-74, 11528 Athens, Greece
Eleftherios Thireos
National Health System, Athens Medical Society, Meandrou 23, 115 28 Athens, Greece
Agis Tsouros
Department of Global Health, Boston University School of Public Health, 715 Albany Street, Boston, MA 02118, USA
Vlado Dimovski
School of Economics and Business, University of Ljubljana Kardeljeva ploščad 17, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia
Sokratis G. Papageorgiou
1st Department of Neurology, Aiginition University Hospital, Vasilissis Sofias Street 72-74, 11528 Athens, Greece
One major challenge during the COVID-19 pandemic was the limited accessibility to healthcare facilities, especially for the older population. The aim of the current study was the exploration of the extent to which the healthcare systems responded to the healthcare needs of the older people with or without cognitive impairment and their caregivers in the Adrion/Ionian region. Data were collected through e-questionnaires regarding the adequacy of the healthcare system and were anonymously administered to older individuals and stakeholder providers in the following countries: Slovenia, Italy (Calabria), Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece, Montenegro, and Serbia. Overall, 722 older people and 267 healthcare stakeholders participated in the study. During the COVID-19 pandemic, both healthcare stakeholders and the older population claimed that the healthcare needs of the older people and their caregivers increased dramatically in all countries, especially in Italy (Calabria), Croatia and BiH. According to our results, countries from the Adrion/Ionian regions faced significant challenges to adjust to the special needs of the older people during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was possibly due to limited accessibility opportunities to healthcare facilities. These results highlight the need for the development of alternative ways of providing medical assistance and supervision when in-person care is not possible.
