Assistant Professor Medical College of wisconsin Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States
Body of Abstract: This project was determined to be exempt by the IRB at the Medical College of Wisconsin.
Research
Aims: According to the U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Healing Effects of Social Connection and Community, about half of all adults in America report experiencing loneliness. While social isolation references the quantity of our social interactions, loneliness measures the quality of our social connections. Loneliness is more than just a bad feeling; it has a significant effect on our individual and community health. Loneliness is associated with a greater risk of disease, dementia, stroke, depression, anxiety, and suicide. Wisconsin has formed a coalition through the Department of Health Services called the “Coalition to End Social Isolation and Loneliness.” The department has identified this as a health need, especially in its effects on older adults and individuals with disabilities. The purpose of this project was to implement and evaluate an innovative strategy to reduce loneliness and prevent suicide among adults, called Community Living Rooms. Community Living Rooms create social connection and belonging through pop up spaces for listening and sharing in collaboration with community partners. By co-creating a welcoming, inclusive, equitable space, Community Living Rooms offer opportunities for connection that will support thriving in community. By enhancing social connection and decreasing loneliness, this project addresses the epidemic of loneliness present in community with the eventual goal of preventing suicide. The ripple physical and psychological effects of loneliness on health is substantial, and Community Living Room seeks to heal through creating spaces that offer connection as the outcome.
Methods: Listeners for Community Living Room are paid and must complete a 12-hour eCPR Certification. Additional qualifications include experience with mental health, substance use, trauma, or other adverse experiences. Additional training is offered for the listeners, along with ongoing opportunities for connection. Listeners reflect the communities served through pop up Community Living Rooms, including listeners from marginalized communities with specific focus on people of color, people who identify as LGBTQ, people with disabilities, and individuals who speak languages other than English. Surveys were developed to capture outcomes related to loneliness and belonging for both listeners and Community Living Room participants. Surveys also capture qualitative data to further describe the experiences of listeners and participants. Descriptive statistics, including frequency counts and proportions, have been calculated to assess outcomes related to the Community Living Rooms.
Results: A total of 46 surveys have been collected to date over five Community Living Room pop up sessions. Among listeners, 96% of surveys indicate an increased sense of belonging and connection as a result of listening to a peer. 93% of listening sessions have involved emotional support and validation of experiences, while 79% of listening sessions have involved developing companionship. Participants reported similar positive experiences - all participants reported that the person listening to them was genuinely interested in their thoughts and feelings, and 89% reported that the person listening respected participant beliefs and opinions. Participants reported that the Community Listening Room helped them feel more connected to others as well as a stronger sense of belonging.
Conclusion: With a framework of connection as prevention, Community Living Room offers an opportunity to prevent crisis and support people in being seen and heard in the moment. This pilot implementation of Community Living Room as a suicide prevention intervention has demonstrated positive outcomes in both listeners and Living Room participants and lays the foundation for the expansion of this type of upstream community-based suicide prevention.
Learning Objectives:
Upon completion, participants will be able to describe the implementation of Community Living Rooms.
Upon completion, participants will be able to assess outcomes of Community Living Rooms, including outcomes related to belonging and connection.
Upon completion, participants will be able to identify how Community Living Rooms address inequities in loneliness and suicide.
