Overview of research of significance for social work during the COVID-19 pandemic

Znanstveni radovi tijekom pandemije COVID-a 19 bavili su se raznim temama kao što su utjecaj pandemije COVID-a 19 na starije osobe, zaposlenike staračkih domova, njegovatelje, zdravstvo i klinički socijalni rad, studente, pripravnike, djecu i roditelje te djecu s teškoćama u razvoju, LGBTQ osobe, beskućnike, izbjeglice, migrante. Osim toga, bile su zastupljene i teme profesije socijalnog rada i COVID-a 19, mentalnog zdravlja, socijalne distance, rasizma, predrasuda, diskriminacije, nasilja. Cilj ovog rada je ukazati kako je pandemija bolesti COVID-a 19 djelovala na praksu socijalnog rada i koje teme su se pokazale osobito relevantnima kroz pregled istraživanja. U radu se daje pregled istraživanja koja se bave utjecajem COVID-a 19 na mentalno zdravlje, studente i starije osobe. Kriza prouzrokovana pandemijom COVID-a 19 imala je negativan utjecaj na mentalno zdravlje opće populacije širom svijeta. Istraživanja govore o raznim psihičkim poteškoćama, a ponajviše o prevalenciji anksioznosti, stresa, usamljenosti i depresije. Što se tiče studenata, pozitivne strane nastave na daljinu najčešće su smanjeni rizik zaraze virusom COVID-19 i učinkovitost u vidu uštede vremena i troškova prijevoza. S druge strane, negativne strane nastave na daljinu koji su najčešće navođeni od strane studenata jesu loša internetska povezanost odnosno nestabilnost mreže i smanjen fokus tijekom pohađanja nastave na daljinu u vidu nemogućnosti koncentriranja i mogućnost lakog ometanja tijekom nastave na daljinu. Što se tiče utjecaja pandemije COVID-a 19 na starije osobe istraživanja govore o negativnom utjecaju COVID-a 19 na emocionalno stanje sudionika, a najveći broj istraživanja potvrđuje osjećaje usamljenosti među starijim osobama.Scientific papers during the COVID-19 pandemic addressed various topics such as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the elderly, nursing home staff, carers, health and clinical and social work, students, trainees, children and parents, and children with disabilities. LGBTQ people, the homeless, refugees, migrants. In addition, the topics of the profession of social work and COVID-19, mental health, social distance, racism, prejudice, discrimination, violence were also represented. The aim of this paper is to point out how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected social work practice and which topics have been shown to be particularly relevant through a review of research. The paper provides an overview of research dealing with the impact of COVID-19 on mental health, students and the elderly. The crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on the mental health of the general population around the world. Research speaks of various psychological difficulties, most notably the prevalence of anxiety, stress, loneliness and depression. As far as students are concerned, the positive aspects of distance learning are most often the reduced risk of contracting the COVID-19 virus and the efficiency in terms of saving time and transportation costs. On the other hand, the negative aspects of distance learning that are most often led by students are poor internet connection or network instability and reduced focus during distance learning in the form of inability to concentrate and the possibility of easy distractions during distance learning. Regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the elderly, research shows a negative impact of COVID-19 on the emotional state of participants, and most studies confirm the feeling of loneliness among the elderly