Paving through the Covid-19 Crisis
How do you provide good care in times of crisis?
Physical presence is indispensable for good care during a prolonged crisis That is the conclusion of organisational scholar Sanaz Kateb, who studied social care organisations in Amsterdam during the COVID-19 crisis. When care professionals and clients saw each other less often, misunderstandings arose more quickly and it became harder to properly assess what people needed. As a result, pressure on both clients and professionals increased.
Kateb examined how care organisations had to adapt their work when COVID-19 measures profoundly changed day-to-day care. These organisations support people in vulnerable situations, such as those without a fixed place to live, people living in poverty or people with mental health difficulties. She interviewed care professionals and clients, and observed up close how care was provided at different moments during the pandemic. Kateb: “This allowed me to follow how organisations adapted their ways of working over time, and what impact this had on clients, professionals and the way care was organised.”
While many people quickly switched to digital tools to stay in touch during the COVID-19 crisis, Kateb studied how social care organisations used these tools in their care provision. “Digital tools could support care and offered new possibilities, but they could not fully replace personal contact. Good care during a prolonged crisis therefore requires flexibility as well as sufficient room for human proximity. The research shows this clearly.”
According to Kateb, this is an important lesson for future crises. Organisations and policymakers should not only introduce crisis measures quickly, but also keep testing them against practice. “Good care in times of crisis means not only acting quickly, but also repeatedly asking what people need, what is working and where measures are unintentionally creating new problems.”
More information on the thesis