El cuidado en los establecimientos de larga estadía para personas mayores (Elepem) en tiempos de pandemia: aportes del Centro Interdisciplinario de Envejecimiento

Vollständiger Abstract

Worum geht es in dieser Arbeit?

The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 had a significant impact on the living conditions of older adults residing in long-term care facilities (Elepem, for its Spanish acronym), making them one of the groups most affected in terms of mortality, age-based discrimination, and social exclusion. In Uruguay, the public health measures implemented to prevent transmisión —such as facility closures and the suspension of visits— while effective from an epidemiological standpoint, had negative consequences for residents’ mental health, subjective well-being, autonomy, and dignity. This paper presents the experience of the Interdisciplinary Center on Aging (Cien) at the Universidad de la República (Udelar), which, together with civil society actors, developed a participatory action research project that promoted the creation and strengthening of a civil society movement dedicated to ensuring the human rights of Elepem residents and their families. Through interdisciplinary analysis, the study reflects on the possibilities for social advocacy in emergency contexts and on the need to harmonize the care of biological life with the protection of the fundamental rights of older adults.