Tom Meuser discusses the impacts of isolation on older adults with the Forecaster

Photo of Tom Meuser, founding director of the U N E Center for Excellence in Aging and Health

recently interviewed Tom Meuser, Ph.D., founding director of the ΒιΆΉΒγΑΔ Center for Excellence in Aging and Health (CEAH), for an article about the impact isolation is having on older adults during the pandemic.

Meuser, along with students and other faculty, are holding Zoom sessions with older adults to keep them engaged. They are also making phone calls to 430 Legacy Scholars, a group of adults aged 55 and older who are participating as subjects in research studies at ΒιΆΉΒγΑΔ on health and wellness in aging.

Meuser told the Forecaster one isolated woman told him she had not showered or changed clothes in four days.

β€œPart of the conversation was self-care, and I challenged her,” Meuser said. β€œSomebody else from the outside can say β€˜Look, this is what’s happening,’ and I think for her it was a wake-up call.”

Meuser says isolation, loneliness, and despair can materialize if older adults are not having sufficient social contact with others and if they don’t see hope for the future. But, he adds, many older adults have learned to be resilient to get through tough times.

β€œIf you’ve made it to the seventh or eighth or ninth decade of life, you have built up a tremendous resource of life experience and ingrained resilience,” Meuser commented. β€œThat gives me a lot of comfort in the present crisis.”

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The ΒιΆΉΒγΑΔ is Maine’s largest independent university, with two beautiful coastal campuses in Maine, a one-of-a-kind study abroad campus in Tangier, Morocco, and an array of . In an uncommonly welcoming and supportive community, we offer hands-on learning, empowering students to make a positive impact in a world full of challenges. The state’s top provider of health professionals, we are home to Maine’s only medical college, Maine’s only dental college, a variety of other interprofessionally aligned health care degree programs, as well as nationally recognized programs for marine science degrees, natural and social sciences degrees, arts and humanities degrees, and business degrees.