In addition to all the negative effects of infection on individuals, especially older people, Covid has had severe and often fatal indirect effects on the care of older people, including those older people with dementia.
During the peak of the recent Omicron wave the exacerbation of existing shortages of skilled workers, and other effects on care had a demonstrable effect on mortality rates in Australian Aged Care. In January 2022 there was a substantial increase in death risk “in aged care, even after removing COVID-19 deaths”. (Prof Tom Blakely, Background Briefing, Geoff Thomson, ABC news, 23/3/22). That is, that increase in deaths was not due to infection with Covid but more likely due to the indirect effects of the pandemic. A spokesman for Senator Colbeck, Minister for Ageing said that the non-COVID deaths “would not be considered statistically unusual.” (?)
As further support for Prof Blakeley’s disturbing but not surprising observation, a United States study showed that mortality increased for all US individuals in 2020 compared to 2019 but that the increase for older adults with dementia was twice that of the general increase in mortality. The increase for “nursing home residents with dementia” was almost three times that of the general population. (doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2021.5330) . This increase was considered by the authors to be above that which could be attributed to direct infection with covid.