How Did the COVID-19 Restrictions Change the Digital Contact of People With Intellectual Disabilities? A Longitudinal Multi-Method Study in Sheltered Home Care Facilities

Abstract

BACKGROUND: During the COVID-19 pandemic, people with intellectual disabilities in sheltered home care facilities had to use digital contact as an alternative to face-to-face contact. METHOD: This study assessed digital and face-to-face contact and sentiment around digital contact among people with different levels of intellectual disability before, during and after the COVID-19 restrictions (2016-2023) by analysing 575,348 daily records from a care organisation and yearly surveys from 342 relatives. RESULTS: In the care records, mentions and positive sentiment around digital contact increased at the start of the restrictions and stabilised after the restrictions. According to relatives, digital contact remained similar over this period, while face-to-face contact was diminished during the restrictions. CONCLUSION: If the increased attention and predominantly positive sentiment to digital contact after the COVID-19 restrictions in one large care organisation is indicative of a wider shift in long-term care, more is needed for increasing contact with relatives.