Media
Long-Term Care Standards
Dr. Stamatopoulos discusses voluntary national standards for LTC on CBC’s The Rundown with Andrew Nichols.
'Isolation kills': Long-term care advocate calls on Ontario to make changes
Has Ontario Failed Long-Term Care? | The Agenda
Is Ontario doing enough to protect long-term care residents?
Opinion | Doug Ford’s new long-term-care legislation, Bill 37, tolls for all of us
Opinion | Preparing nursing homes for a second wave starts with staffing
Opinion | Keeping private long-term care would be a deadly mistake
Opinion | Irreparable harm was incurred by visitation bans in long-term-care homes and must never be repeated
Caregivers were traumatized by COVID-19 public health and long-term care policies
“We’ve All Lost So Much”: The Long-Term Care Home Experiences of Essential Family Caregivers During COVID-19
by Charlene Chu, Amanda Yee, Vivian Stamatopoulos
Published by Canadian Journal on Aging
November 22, 2022
Young Carers, The Overlooked Caregiving Population: Introduction to a Special Issue
by Melinda Kavanugh, Vivian Stamatopoulos
Published by Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal
September 13, 2021
“Young carers”, or “caregiving youth”, have existed on the fringes of the caregiving literature, programming and support for decades, beginning the UK in the early 1990’s (Leu & Becker, 2017), which has informed over two decades of targeted young carer programs, services and funding. Yet, the overall inclusion of children and youth into the larger caregiving literature has lagged, often due to social norms or expectations as to what constitutes a “caregiver” and what is considered outside the social constructs of the role children and youth have in families.
URL: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10560-021-00797-2
The young carer penalty: Exploring the costs of caregiving among a sample of Canadian youth
by Vivian Stamatopoulos
Published by Child & Youth Services
August 29, 2018
This research contributes a first-hand account of the experiences of youth’s substantial unpaid familial caregiving in the context of long-term illness, disability or problems related to alcohol and/or other drugs. A qualitative focus group methodology explored the benefits and challenges of youth’s caregiving via a sample of 15 youth caregivers (or young carers) from both the Greater Toronto area and the Niagara Region of Southern Ontario. The findings reveal evidence for a unique “young carer penalty,” a term coined by this research to build upon the gendered “care penalty” experienced by adult women (especially mothers) when performing care work.
Poor and Lost Connections: Essential Family Caregivers’ Experiences Using Technology with Family Living in Long-Term Care Homes during COVID-19
by Charlene Chu, Amanda Yee, Vivian Stamatopoulos
Published by Journal of Applied Gerontology (JAG)
April 13, 2022
Abstract
Background: Long-term care homes (LTCHs) restricted essential family caregivers’ (EFCs) visitations during COVID-19, and virtual visits using technology were used. Objective: To understand EFCs’ virtual visitations experiences during COVID-19 in two Canadian provinces. Methods: Seven focus groups were conducted with EFCs. Thematic analysis was used to identify themes at micro, meso, and macro levels. Results: Four themes were found: 1) a lack of technology and infrastructure; 2) barriers to scheduling visitations; 3) unsuitable technology implementation; and 4) inability of technology to adapt to residents’ needs. Discussion: Virtual visitations showcased a confluence of micro, meso, and macro factors that, in some cases, negatively impacted the EFCs, residents, and the relationship between EFCs and residents. Structural and home inequities within and beyond the LTCH impacted the quality of technology-based visitations, underscoring the need to support technology infrastructure and training to ensure residents are able to maintain relationships during visitation bans. Conclusion: EFCs’ experiences of technology-based visitations were impacted by structural vulnerabilities of the LTCH sector.
“It’s the worst thing I’ve ever been put through in my life”: the trauma experienced by essential family caregivers of loved ones in long-term care during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada
by Charlene Chu, Amanda Yee, Vivian Stamatopoulos
Published by International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being
May 30, 2022
Essential family caregivers (EFCs) of relatives living in long-term care homes (LTCHs) experienced restricted access to their relatives due to COVID-19 visitation policies. Residents’ experiences of separation have been widely documented; yet, few have focused on EFCs’ traumatic experiences during the pandemic. Objective: This study aims to explore the EFCs’ trauma of being locked out of LTCHs and unable to visit their loved ones in-person during COVID-19.
Biography
Dr. Vivian Stamatopoulos is a Canadian academic and advocate specializing in long-term care (LTC) and caregiving. Stamatopoulos continues to be a leading voice in advocating for improvements in long-term care and supporting caregivers across Canada and provided over 300 expert news media interviews during the COVID-19 pandemic.