Covid-19 lockdown and some urban elderly
OUR country is in the new normal in the past nine months because we have learned to adapt to changes brought about by the pandemic. Through the national and local government units, the health system and other sectors’ support, as well as the cooperation of the general population with the state’s health policies and protocols, we have managed to reduce the number of new Covid-19 cases. I would, however, like to look back at the 14-month (March 2020-May 2021) lockdown, and to share a part of the findings of a qualitative study about effects of the pandemic on various age categories of the population that a small group of researchers in my university conducted from April to May 2021. I was assigned to study the most vulnerable population during the lockdown, particularly the elderly or senior citizens.
I led a team of three researchers (Dr. Chanell Concepcion, Saniata Masulit and Dennis Coronel) who lived in three different cities and interviewed 15 key informants (KIs) by using mobile phones or the internet (face-to-face interviews were not allowed then). The 15 KIs comprised 11 females and four males whose ages ranged from 63 to 79 (seven were 70 years and older, while eight were below 70). Eight had college or higher degrees, while seven had lower levels of education. They were married for around 43 years (range, 29-59), had an average number of three children (range, 1-6) whose ages ranged from 24 to 58. Eight KIs had married children and grandchildren.
Before the pandemic, 13 of these elderly KIs were “empty nesters” because their adult children have left their homes to study, work or marry. During the lockdown, however, seven KIs said some of their married and unmarried children started living with them for varied reasons: to save on rent, to obtain financial support and to assist them. Ten KIs reported that other relatives (e.g., mother, aunts, cousins, grandchildren, sons or daughters-in-law) also lived with them. Some working children and relatives contributed to the KIs’ household expenses.
The KIs with college and higher levels of education have retired from their jobs in the private or public sectors, and they received monthly pensions from either the Social Security System (SSS) or the Government Service Insurance System. But they were still economically active after retirement and had salaries or consultancy fees for engaging in full-time or part-time work in private organizations, or in government agencies even during the lockdown.
The KIs with lower levels of education were engaged in varied buy-and-sell activities prior to the lockdown by managing a small vehicle parts shop, a small poultry or a sari-sari (variety) store; and selling home-cooked meals or vegetables in the public market. They had no monthly pension because they were not members of the SSS, or any savings or insurance scheme. Three KIs received small amounts of money from their children who worked elsewhere. One female KI apparently had sufficient savings because she was a long-time caregiver in the United States, but she was forced to come home to attend to her husband who had a stroke. Two female KIs had no jobs and were dependent on their retired spouses’ small monthly pensions.
Prior to the March 2020 Covid-19 lockdown, the KIs had heard about the signs and symptoms of the disease from various sources — TV, newspapers, social media and friends — but they did not take the virus seriously. Some believed that this was like the ordinary flu. They heard about older people dying in Italy and in the United States, but they thought that these places were so far away. Berta (not a real name), a vegetable vendor, age 68, heard that this virus originated from bats in China, and some Chinese who ate these mammals got infected. She said that since most Filipinos do not eat bats, there was no need to worry about the virus. One KI thought that it was a just a gimmick by pharmaceutical companies to sell more drugs.
When the lockdown was enforced nationally, the KIs were shocked to know that the elderly, age 65 and older, were not allowed to leave their homes. They were worried about their health because most of them have chronic diseases. They were concerned about the future of their children, grandchildren and other relatives, and their inability to see them, their access to food and medicine, and the implications of this upheaval on their livelihood and other activities. One KI who had a medical degree said Covid-19 was probably like the Spanish flu that killed several million people. Most of them prayed hard to survive during the pandemic. Only one female KI claimed that Covid-19 was God’s punishment to our sinful world.
Most KIs knew of some relatives, friends and neighbors who had Covid-19, and few had died. Only one KI admitted that he contracted the virus during the lockdown. His difficult experience made him mindful of all health protocols.
The reported rising number of deaths among the elderly everywhere made the KIs feel that they were the pandemic’s target. The reaction of Ed, age 74, who operated a small poultry and a sari-sari store, was somehow prophetic about the pandemic’s adverse effects on the poor elderly. “Damo na gid ya bala gakalamatay sina...kami man ang mas pigado kay pobre kag mga tigulang pa gid. Amo na gid ni siguro bala ang end of the world (Many have died because of it ... we are the most disadvantaged because we are poor and old. Maybe this is the end of the world).”
And indeed, the elderly with less formal education and who were engaged in livelihood activities in the informal sector had more challenges compared to the KIs with higher levels of education and stable incomes. Because of the lockdown, their buy-and-sell activities stopped abruptly. Most of them had no savings and pension and had mounting debts. The children who were sending support to some of them either lost their jobs or had difficulty assisting them financially. The worst off among them was exemplified by Berta because she and all the other working members of her large household of 11 lost their jobs before Christmas in 2020. She was unable to borrow money and had no one to talk to about her family’s predicament. One evening, she attempted to commit suicide by jumping into the city’s large and murky river. Fortunately, someone saved her that fateful night. After this incident, some relatives, neighbors, barangay (village) officials and other market vendors who learned about her difficulties extended financial and social support to her and her family.
The poor elderly reportedly managed to survive during the lockdown through the help of some working children, ayuda (aid) from their local government units and support from better-off relatives, helpful neighbors and some community-based organizations.The KIs with more formal schooling and who had stable incomes, recognized that there were limitations in their movement, social interactions and other activities. But they appear to have adjusted well to the new arrangements brought about by the pandemic. They frequently communicated with relatives and friends through the internet and their mobile phones. They could afford to continue consulting with private health practitioners through telemedicine and procure essential drugs, food and other supplies with the assistance of their children and relatives.
The lockdown has also brought positive changes in the KIs’ households because the members have reportedly bonded well and have become more prayerful, and mindful in observing the health protocols. Some of them engaged in new hobbies like vegetable and ornamental plant gardening. Some female KIs were pleased that the lockdown prevented their husbands from maintaining their vices particularly gambling, cockfighting and drinking bouts with their friends.
The findings of this qualitative study gave some insights about the perceptions and experiences of some urban elderly about Covid-19 during prolonged lockdown in our country. It showed that education is associated with occupation and financial stability at old age. The family, particularly the presence of returning adult children and relatives in the senior citizens’ households, has provided them with psychosocial and economic support and access to essential supplies and services in the community. The assistance extended by the government, concerned organizations, neighbors and relatives was critical in the survival of disadvantaged urban elderly KIs during this period.