Older people, isolation and loneliness: implications for community nursing

Recently, the issues of loneliness and social isolation among older people living in the community have been highlighted through television programmes, publications and campaign groups. Prevalence is age-related and is of most concern in the ‘oldest old’ group, where numbers are set to rise in the coming years. There is evidence to link a number of environmental, psychosocial and biomedical factors to loneliness and social isolation; research suggests that many of these are amenable to intervention in order to improve older people's lives. Initiatives largely include one-to-one interventions; group activities; or community engagement approaches. Community nurses are in a position to effect some of these changes in their areas of work.