TY - JOUR
T1 - Pathways and obstacles to social recovery following the elimination of SARS-CoV-2 from Aotearoa New Zealand
T2 - A qualitative cross-sectional study
AU - Long, Nicholas J.
AU - Appleton, Nayantara Sheoran
AU - Davies, Sharyn Graham
AU - Deckert, Antje
AU - Fehoko, Edmond
AU - Holroyd, Eleanor
AU - Martin-Anatias, Nelly
AU - Sterling, Rogena
AU - Trnka, Susanna
AU - Tunufa'I, Laumua
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Faculty of Public Health.
PY - 2022/12/1
Y1 - 2022/12/1
N2 - Background: Many public health experts have claimed that elimination strategies of pandemic response allow 'normal social life' to resume. Recognizing that social connections and feelings of normality are important for public health, this study examines whether, and for whom, that goal is realized, and identifies obstacles that may inhibit its achievement. Methods: Thematic analysis of narratives obtained via a qualitative cross-sectional survey of a community cohort in Aotearoa | New Zealand. Results: A majority of participants reported that life after elimination was 'more or less the same' as before the pandemic. Some became more social. Nevertheless, a sizeable minority reported being less social, even many months after elimination. Key obstacles to social recovery included fears that the virus was circulating undetected and the enduring impact of lockdowns upon social relationships, personal habits and mental health. Within our sample, old age and underlying health conditions were both associated with a propensity to become less social. Conclusions: Elimination strategies can successfully allow 'normal social life' to resume. However, this outcome is not guaranteed. People may encounter difficulties with re-establishing social connections in Zero-COVID settings. Measures designed to overcome such obstacles should be an integral part of elimination strategies.
AB - Background: Many public health experts have claimed that elimination strategies of pandemic response allow 'normal social life' to resume. Recognizing that social connections and feelings of normality are important for public health, this study examines whether, and for whom, that goal is realized, and identifies obstacles that may inhibit its achievement. Methods: Thematic analysis of narratives obtained via a qualitative cross-sectional survey of a community cohort in Aotearoa | New Zealand. Results: A majority of participants reported that life after elimination was 'more or less the same' as before the pandemic. Some became more social. Nevertheless, a sizeable minority reported being less social, even many months after elimination. Key obstacles to social recovery included fears that the virus was circulating undetected and the enduring impact of lockdowns upon social relationships, personal habits and mental health. Within our sample, old age and underlying health conditions were both associated with a propensity to become less social. Conclusions: Elimination strategies can successfully allow 'normal social life' to resume. However, this outcome is not guaranteed. People may encounter difficulties with re-establishing social connections in Zero-COVID settings. Measures designed to overcome such obstacles should be an integral part of elimination strategies.
KW - COVID-19
KW - health policy
KW - pandemic
KW - sense of normality
KW - social isolation
KW - social relationships
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85123800159&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/pubmed/fdab394
DO - 10.1093/pubmed/fdab394
M3 - Article
C2 - 35020940
AN - SCOPUS:85123800159
SN - 1741-3842
VL - 44
SP - E548-E556
JO - Journal of Public Health
JF - Journal of Public Health
IS - 4
ER -