Dataset Information

Finding connection "while everything is going to crap": experiences in Recovery Colleges during the COVID-19 pandemic.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Recovery Colleges (RCs) are mental health and well-being education centres where people come together and learn skills that support their wellness. Co-production, co-learning and transformative education are fundamental to RCs. People with lived experience are recognized as experts who partner with health professionals in the design and actualization of educational programming. The pandemic has changed how RCs operate by necessitating a shift from in-person to virtual offerings. Given the relational ethos of RCs, it is important to explore how the experiences of RC members and communities were impacted during this time. To date, there has been limited scholarship on this topic.

Methods

In this exploratory phase of a larger project, we used participatory action research to interview people who were accessing, volunteering and/or working in RCs across Canada. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with twenty-nine individuals who provided insights on what is important to them about RC programming.

Results

Our study was conducted amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Accordingly, participants elucidated how their involvement in RCs was impacted by pandemic related restrictions. The results of this study demonstrate that RC programming is most effective when it: (1) is inclusive; (2) has a "good vibe"; and (3) equips people to live a fuller life.

Conclusions

The pandemic, despite its challenges, has yielded insights into a possible evolution of the RC model that transcends the pandemic-context. In a time of great uncertainty, RCs served as safe spaces where people could redefine, pursue, maintain or recover wellness on their own terms.

SUBMITTER: Harris H

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10485942 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Finding connection "while everything is going to crap": experiences in Recovery Colleges during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Harris Holly H Shier Rowen R Black Georgia G Di Giandomenico Anna A Lin Elizabeth E Bellissimo Gail G Rovet Jordana J Gruszecki Sam S Soklaridis Sophie S

Research involvement and engagement 20230907 1

<h4>Background</h4>Recovery Colleges (RCs) are mental health and well-being education centres where people come together and learn skills that support their wellness. Co-production, co-learning and transformative education are fundamental to RCs. People with lived experience are recognized as experts who partner with health professionals in the design and actualization of educational programming. The pandemic has changed how RCs operate by necessitating a shift from in-person to virtual offering ...[more]

PMID: 37679794

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Project description:Objective This study assesses the impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on the pattern of neurological emergencies reaching a tertiary care center. Materials and Methods This is a retrospective and single center study involving 295 patients with neurological emergencies mainly including acute stroke, status epilepticus (SE), and tubercular meningitis visiting emergency department (ED) from January 1 to April 30, 2020 and divided into pre- and during lockdown, the latter starting from March 25 onward. The primary outcome was number of neurological emergencies visiting ED per week in both periods. Secondary outcomes included disease severity at admission, need for mechanical ventilation (MV), delay in hospitalization, in-hospital mortality, and reasons for poor compliance to ongoing treatment multivariate binary logistic regression was used to find independent predictors of in-hospital mortality which included variables with p <0.1 on univariate analysis. Structural break in the time series analysis was done by using Chow test. Results There was 53.8% reduction in number of neurological emergencies visiting ED during lockdown (22.1 visits vs. 10.2 visits per week, p = 0.001), significantly affecting rural population ( p = 0.004). Presenting patients had comparatively severe illness with increased requirement of MV ( p < 0.001) and significant delay in hospitalization during lockdown ( p < 0.001). Poor compliance to ongoing therapy increased from 34.4% in pre-lockdown to 64.7% patients during lockdown ( p < 0.001), mostly due to nonavailability of drugs ( p < 0.001). Overall, 35 deaths were recorded, with 20 (8.2%) in pre-lockdown and 15 (29.4%) during lockdown ( p = 0.001). Lockdown, nonavailability of local health care, delay in hospitalization, severity at admission, and need for MV emerged as independent predictors of poor outcome in stroke and delay in hospitalization in SE. Conclusion COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdown resulted in marked decline in non-COVID neurological emergencies reporting to ED, with more severe presentations and significant delay from onset of symptoms to hospitalization.

Dataset Information

Finding connection "while everything is going to crap": experiences in Recovery Colleges during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Finding connection "while everything is going to crap": experiences in Recovery Colleges during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Similar Datasets

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