183 DEVELOPING AND FACILITATING ONLINE INTERGENERATIONAL CAFÉS

Background

Many older people throughout their lives will require nursing care, consequentially most nurses will care for older people during their career. It is important that older people and student nurses are provided with shared learning opportunities so that professional caring partnerships can be nurtured and realised for mutual benefit. Intergenerational projects offer opportunities for intergenerational learning. However, few projects explore student nurse-older person dyads and how these can be integrated within undergraduate pre-registration programmes. This paper describes the development and facilitation of online older person-student nurse intergenerational cafés.

Methods

The project was managed by a design team comprising senior administration, lecturers in BSc Nursing programmes and a lecturer in Design for Health and Wellbeing. The ‘world café’ concept along with values of enablement and participation underpinned the design. The initiative was planned to align with a year three community care module. Regular online team meetings were held to agree the aims and outcomes for student nurse-older person cohorts, decide recruitment strategies, agree the process and format of facilitation. Older people were recruited through retirement, church, volunteer, social and sporting organisations, media and also using snowballing methods.

Results

Both student nurse and older person cohorts were offered support on how to access and participate in the café. Participants attended one of three online cafés hosted through Microsoft Teams. Each café followed the same format: 1) Group meeting convened with all participants; 2) Breakout small group ‘table’ discussions with student nurse-older people participants and design team facilitation; 3) The café was reconvened to whole group meeting where feedback was collated to elicit shared learning.

Conclusion

The initiative proved successful and there is merit in embedding intergenerational cafés into professionally accredited health care programmes. Through sharing life experiences and perspectives, intergenerational barriers can be reduced and new insights developed on person-centred gerontological care.

79 EXPERIENCES OF DIRECTORS OF NURSING IN RESIDENTIAL CARE OF OLDER PEOPLE DURING COVID 19

Background

COVID-19 was a global public health crisis and deaths in the over 65 age group represented a disproportionate number of deaths in older people. In particular, nursing homes experienced clusters of infection and high mortality rates. This paper discusses experiences of care homes’ Directors of Nursing/Persons in Charge (DoN) in their preparedness, management and control of care during COVID-19.

Methods

A mixed methods approach was used (survey- n=122) and semi-structured interviews (n=20) were conducted with DoNs in private and voluntary older person care homes in the Republic of Ireland. Survey data was analysed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Interviews were analysed using Braun & Clarke's thematic analysis.

Results

DoNs demonstrated an initial challenge in protecting residents from infection and also managing infection outbreak. However, over time they experienced more effectiveness in managing infection prevention and control as demanded at the level of a pandemic. Fifty percent of respondents experienced an infection outbreak and the data does not demonstrate any significant difference in preparedness and management in care homes which had outbreaks and those who had no outbreaks. Other challenges were related to financial sustainability of their facility while 47% of DoNs were either actively seeking other work, or thinking of leaving their post. In the interviews, the DoNs spoke of persistent concerns with the well-being of the staff and residents and a constant worry about meeting regulatory requirements and ensuring adequate staff cover for residents care needs. Moreover, the DoNs spoke of the difficulties when the media sensationalized poor care leading to a reduction of public confidence in the sector.

Conclusion

The DoNs were under constant alert and although had acclimatized to high level of infection control and prevention and managing emerging issues, the strain of the pandemic remained evident. Recommendations are given related to care homes and related to system level management for future public health crisis.