Thamara Tapia-Muñoz, a young MICARE researcher and academic at the Health Care Research Institute (IICS) of the UNAB Faculty of Nursing, organized a refresher meeting that brought together students, teachers, and professionals to reflect on the impact of loneliness on health and move toward collaborative intervention strategies.
The update session, “Loneliness throughout the life cycle: a challenge for public health,” sponsored by the Ministry of Health, sought to highlight, through dialogue and reflection, the complexity of loneliness and its impact on physical and mental health from a transdisciplinary and life cycle perspective.
The dean of the Andrés Bello University School of Nursing, Mónica Canales, highlighted the importance of collaborative work. “I invite you to participate actively and, above all, to forge alliances so that we can translate individual efforts into concrete collective projects. Loneliness is not a destiny, but a phenomenon that we must change, restoring connections and generating research that includes all stages of the life cycle.”
For her part, Naldy Fabrés, director of IICS, highlighted the importance of the issue: “We are very happy, especially with the support of other institutes such as MICARE, because talking about loneliness at this time positions us nationally. We want to promote interdisciplinary and transnational research that addresses this problem, especially in older people, where the pandemic has significantly accentuated it.”
Thamara Tapia-Muñoz, for her part, appreciated the opportunity to open this debate, stating that “I am very happy because this issue is not only something I am passionate about, but also urgent. The World Health Organization (WHO) resolution gives us the opportunity to look at it from a public and global health perspective, in order to intervene at the macro-structural level. It is a unique moment for us to take charge.”
During the conference, prominent speakers participated, such as Esteban Calvo (Universidad Mayor), who addressed the relationship between loneliness and longevity; Claudia Miranda (MICARE – UNAB), with findings on loneliness among Chilean caregivers; Cecilia Albala (INTA – University of Chile), with an analysis of loneliness and food security; and Soledad Herrera (ISUC – MICARE), who presented on social networks, isolation, and loneliness in older adults.
Alejandra Araya (IICS-UNAB, MICARE) spoke about the relationship between loneliness and frailty in older adults; Antonia Díaz-Valdez (CISS – U. Mayor) discussed alcohol consumption and loneliness; and Beatriz Carrasco (UNAP) presented findings on loneliness in rural older adults.
The first part of the meeting concluded with a panel discussion entitled “How do we move towards a structural approach to loneliness?”, with the participation of representatives from academia, SENAMA, and the Ministry of Health.
In the second block, there were presentations such as that by Daniela Thumala (University of Chile) on the importance of helping others in old age, and a new intervention by Thamara Tapia, who spoke about loneliness in Chilean adolescents based on the National Youth Survey.
The day ended with a panel discussion entitled “How have we moved towards more connected societies?”, which brought together representatives from academia, the Ministry of Health, and organizations for older adults.
You can access the conference here
Credits: UNAB Communications
