- Page navigation anchor for What is missing in the guideline for equitable COVID-19 pandemic recovery in Canada? Toward greater consideration of the importance of older adults in health and social services, research and societyWhat is missing in the guideline for equitable COVID-19 pandemic recovery in Canada? Toward greater consideration of the importance of older adults in health and social services, research and society
Worldwide, including in Canada, health and social service professionals, researchers, decision-makers, politicians and citizens must learn from the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. To guide policymaking, Persaud and colleagues1 published their recommendations for an equitable COVID-19 pandemic recovery in Canada. Based on its findings from systematic reviews, this MAP Task Force to Promote Health Equity during Pandemic Recovery made 13 valuable recommendations related to income, housing, intimate partner violence, childhood, access to health care, and racism. As noted in Patrick’s editorial,2 no recommendations are provided for social care for older adults. This omission is profoundly shocking and could indicate of ageism. Defined as positive or negative stereotypes (thoughts), prejudices (feelings), and discrimination (actions or behaviours) based on perceived age,3,4 ageism is a phenomenon that can be self-directed, interpersonal, or institutional, as well as conscious (explicit) or unconscious (implicit). Of all population groups, older adults were most disproportionately affected by the pandemic,5 which exacerbates manifestations of ageism.6-8 In the context of COVID-19 and given the investment in health care resources, it is clear that society places a lower value on the lives of older adults.9,10 Ageism definitely merits a 14th recommendation in these guidelines; we suggest something along the following lines.1
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We strongly recommend reflection and act...Competing Interests: Mélanie Levasseur is a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) New Investigator (#360880; 2017-2022) and a Fonds de la recherche du Québec–Santé (FRQS) Senior Researcher (#298996; 2021-2025). Alan A. Cohen is a FRQS Senior Researcher and founder/CEO of Oken Health. Carine Bétrisey received a postdoctoral scholarship from the Research Centre on Aging and the Mitacs Accelerate program.References
- 1. Nav Persaud, Hannah Woods, Aine Workentin, et al. Recommendations for equitable COVID-19 pandemic recovery in Canada. CMAJ 2021;193:E1878-E1888.
- 2. Patrick K. (2021). Build back more equitably. CMAJ: Canadian Medical Association Journal, 193(49), E1891–E1892. https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.211987
- 3. World Health Organization. (2021). Demographic Change and Healthy Ageing—Combatting Ageism. https://www.who.int/teams/social-determinants-of-health/demographic-change-and-healthy-ageing/combatting-ageism
- 4. World Health Organization. (2021). Global report on ageism. Geneva: World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240016866
- For more information, references and complete authors list, please go to: https://mlevasseur.recherche.usherbrooke.ca/what-is-missing/
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