We have been contacted regarding a new study by Manchester Institute for Collaborative Research on Ageing (MICRA) at the University of Manchester.
It is a small project looking into LGBT people over 60 who were experiencing social exclusion / isolation before the pandemic and the impact of social distancing rules on their circumstances.
Please contact me if interested, so arrangements can be made.
Introduction to Research
Background
This research is being led by researcher at the Manchester Institute for Collaborative Research on Ageing (MICRA) at the University of Manchester.
The research will involve interviews (by telephone) with older people about their current experiences of social distancing and self-isolation at the time of the Covid 19 pandemic. We are interested in how people are coping with social distancing, what support they are able to access and what gaps in support might exist.
We want to find out how social distancing is affecting people’s everyday lives, from your perspective. We will talk to a range of people from a range of backgrounds, different communities and who are living a range of circumstances such as those living alone and those who live with their extended families.
The reason that we are carrying out this research is that there has been lots of attention brought to the negative impact of the virus on older people. But we feel that the voices and stories of older people have not yet been heard, and that older people have not been consulted about the types of support which have been provided so far.
The aim of our research is to collect a range of detailed accounts of everyday live during coronavirus, so we can advise services about what is currently working well, and where people over 60 need more support.
We feel that it is important to understand the experiences of a range of groups of people over 60 and to raise attention to where there are gaps or issues which need to be addressed.
If you do choose to take part in the research your anonymity will be protected and all names and other identifying information removed.
Taking part
The research will involve you speaking to our researcher, Luciana Lang by telephone.
The first telephone call will be short and a chance for you to introduce yourself to each other and for you to ask any questions you have about the research. Luciana will also ask for some background information such as your age, who lives in your household, occupation and health status etc.
The first interview will take place about a week later. All interviews will be audio recorded for our note taking and then transcribed. The interview should last around 30 minutes.
You will then receive a check up phone call about 2-3 weeks later to see how you are getting on and to update you on how the research is progressing. We will then organise another time for follow up interview to see how their experiences have changed over time.
The Second interview again will be audio recorded.
Ethics
- Ethical approval has been given by the University of Manchester.
- Verbal consent will be required over the telephone.
- All interviews will be recorded and transcribed
- We may wish to use some of the interviews at a later date to create a podcast, or to play in presentations
Data protocol
All documents containing participant information should be locked – a password will be agreed by the project team.
Out in the City 