Meals on Wheels central Texas: addressing loneliness and isolation through client-volunteer interaction

Meals on Wheels central Texas: addressing loneliness and isolation through client-volunteer interaction

Christine Bonagurio, Emily Brunson, Seanna Marceaux, Lauren Sasser
Working with Older People, Vol. ahead-of-print, No. ahead-of-print, pp.-

Meals on Wheel Central Texas (MOWCTX) provides meals to more than 5,000 home-bound older adults in the Austin area every weekday. The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of client-volunteer interactions to assess the social benefits clients receive and ascertain if and how loneliness and social isolation are addressed.
Observations of volunteer-client interactions, interviews with clients and surveys of clients were conducted to gain insight into clients’ experiences with MOWCTX services.
Qualitative analysis of observation and interview data revealed four non-tangible benefits clients received from MOWCTX: reduced physical risks when mobility issues are present, a daily safety check, opportunities for social contact and increased ability to maintain independence. Survey results supported these conclusions.
This research examines the impact of volunteer-client relationships on the experience of loneliness and social isolation.

Source: Working with Older People - June 24, 2021 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Christine Bonagurio Emily Brunson Seanna Marceaux Lauren Sasser Source Type: research