%0 Journal Article
%@ 1438-8871
%I JMIR Publications
%V 23
%N 2
%P e26254
%T Using Twitter to Understand the COVID-19 Experiences of People With Dementia: Infodemiology Study
%A Bacsu,Juanita-Dawne
%A O'Connell,Megan E
%A Cammer,Allison
%A Azizi,Mahsa
%A Grewal,Karl
%A Poole,Lisa
%A Green,Shoshana
%A Sivananthan,Saskia
%A Spiteri,Raymond J
%+ Department of Psychology, University of Saskatchewan, 9 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5A5, Canada, 1 306 966 2496, megan.oconnell@usask.ca
%K Twitter
%K social media
%K dementia
%K COVID-19
%K health policy
%K experience
%K support
%K disorder
%K theme
%K collaborate
%K quality of life
%D 2021
%7 3.2.2021
%9 Original Paper
%J J Med Internet Res
%G English
%X Background: The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting people with dementia in numerous ways. Nevertheless, there is a paucity of research on the COVID-19 impact on people with dementia and their care partners. Objective: Using Twitter, the purpose of this study is to understand the experiences of COVID-19 for people with dementia and their care partners. Methods: We collected tweets on COVID-19 and dementia using the GetOldTweets application in Python from February 15 to September 7, 2020. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the tweets. Results: From the 5063 tweets analyzed with line-by-line coding, we identified 4 main themes including (1) separation and loss; (2) COVID-19 confusion, despair, and abandonment; (3) stress and exhaustion exacerbation; and (4) unpaid sacrifices by formal care providers. Conclusions: There is an imminent need for governments to rethink using a one-size-fits-all response to COVID-19 policy and use a collaborative approach to support people with dementia. Collaboration and more evidence-informed research are essential to reducing COVID-19 mortality and improving the quality of life for people with dementia and their care partners. 
%M 33468449
%R 10.2196/26254
%U https://www.jmir.org/2021/2/e26254
%U https://doi.org/10.2196/26254
%U http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/33468449