Leveraging the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging research platform to mobilize COVID-19 research

Impact Story of the Year

The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionally affected older people. Hospitalizations and COVID-related deaths were higher among adults over 65 years of age than those under 65. Researchers across Canada accessed the longitudinal data collected by the CLSA research platform in combination with the CLSA COVD-19 questionnaire data to explore questions related to mental health, mobility, caregiving, vaccination, social isolation, loneliness and alcohol consumption.

Findings that leveraged the CLSA research platform include:

• Pandemic depression persists, especially among adults who are lonely (November 2021)
• For people over 50, even mild COVID-19 can result in mobility problems (January 2022)
• Female informal caregivers who provide intensive care at home experienced higher levels of depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2022)
• Pandemic prompts higher uptake of flu vaccination among older adults (January 2022)
• Hard to change minds when it comes to vaccine willingness (April 2022)
• One in four older adults reported changing their alcohol intake during the pandemic (July 2022)

The results from these studies were reported by media in Canada and Internationally, including in the Globe & Mail and New York Times. A report on Social Isolation Among Older Adults During the Pandemic was also prepared for the Federal/Provincial/Territorial (FPT) Forum of Ministers Responsible for Seniors.

About the Team

The CLSA research team includes Drs. Parminder Raina, Christina Wolfson, Susan Kirkland, Lauren Griffith, Cynthia Balion, Andrew Costa, Laura Anderson, Yukiko Asada, Benoît Cossette, Melanie Levasseur, Scott Hofer, Theone Paterson, David Hogan, Teresa Liu-Ambrose, Verena Menec, Philip St. John, Gerald Mugford, Zhiwei Gao, Vanessa Taler, Patrick Davidson, Andrew Wister, Theodore Cosco, Jacqueline McMillan, Nicole Basta, Brent Richards, Marla Beauchamp, Jinhui Ma. Several trainees and analysts have also been involved in the research.