Grandparents' Mental Health and Lived Experiences while Raising Their Grandchildren at the Forefront of COVID-19 in Saudi Arabia. Issue 5 (4th July 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Zakari, Nazik M.A.; Hamadi, Hanadi Y.; Bailey, Chloe E.; Jibreel, Ebtesam A.M.
• Is Part Of: Journal of gerontological social work. Volume 65:Issue 5(2022)
• Page Start: 512
• Page End: 528
• Publication Date: 2022-07-04
• Subjects: Grandparents -- stress -- raising grandchildren -- Covid-19 -- social isolation; Social work with older people -- United States -- Periodicals; Geriatrics -- Periodicals; 362.6
• DOI: 10.1080/01634372.2021.1983684
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0163-4372

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Understanding grandparents' lived experiences and healthy aging is essential to designing efficient, effective, and safe services to support a family structure in which grandparents care for their grandchildren. However, no study to date has explored this concept in an Arab and Muslim country during a pandemic. The purpose of this study was to examine grandparents' experiences raising their grandchildren to provide recommendations for needed mental health interventions during and after COVID-19. We used a phenomenological approach to gain a detailed and in-depth understanding of the lived experiences of 15 grandparents caring for their grandchildren. This study shows the need for support service interventions (support groups, health professional support, and respite care) for grandparents in Saudi Arabia, especially during global crises like COVID-19, that enhance social distance and social isolation. Raising grandchildren affects the physical, mental, and social wellbeing of the grandparents.