Line dancing offers Atlanta seniors an escape from pandemic isolation

DECATUR, Ga. - Every Tuesday, for the last 4 months, 72-year-old Viola Duncan and her daughter Sandra have been coming to the doctor's office to dance.

"It's nice.  I enjoy doing different programs," Duncan says.  "All I have to do is follow the leader."

The leader in this case is a line dance instructor who goes by "Bam Bam," calling the steps at one of the most popular classes at Oak Street Health in Decatur, Georgia, where Viola is a primary care patient.

"I enjoy myself coming here, I enjoy being with Bam Bam," she says.

"I think she's got it," Duncan's daughter laughs.  "Here, with Bam Bam, we always say you've got to keep on moving, so you move when the line moves, and you turn when the line turns."

And, this is about more than staying in step.  

It's about reconnecting seniors who have been sidelined for the last two and half years by the pandemic.

Dr. Anita Varkey, senior medical director for Oak Street Health for Georgia and Alabama, says the pandemic has left many of their older patients increasingly isolated and cut off from their social support network.

"I think loneliness can happen and impact people at any age," Dr. Varkey says.  "But, I think, particularly for our seniors, who may be widowed or widowers, may be not living in a nuclear family, may be living in a single apartment, and not having connections, let's say, that work would bring, 2:50 Dr. those challenges, I would say, are particularly acutely felt by our older adults."

Sandra Duncan, a chef who runs her own catering business, says her mom has been diagnosed with cognitive issues.  

So, she moved her mother from Baton Rouge to Atlanta to live with her 3 years ago.

"I really feel like I can give her another 10-15 years of life just by making her happy," Duncan says.  "If a person is happy, that gives them life."

Sandra Duncan also feels included in her mother's care at the center.

"I can go in with her, can hear everything that the doctor, they don't keep anything from me," Duncan says.  "I bring her to the doctor."

Still, she worries her mom sometimes feels lonely being so far away from her family and friends in Louisiana.

"A lot of times, with her being quiet, the way that she is, I wonder what is she thinking," Duncan says.  "Who can get on her level? She needs to be around people her age."

Dr. Varkey says Oak Street Health wants to offer not just primary care, but a safe place for seniors and their family members to socialize, take classes, and just hang out.

Instead of waiting areas, she says, they have community rooms, where they offer coffee and classes like yoga or painting.

One center, she says, offered a speed dating program that was a hit with the patients.

"All of these things do really augment to bring people together," Varkey says.  "So, they may come into the room strangers, but they leave connected in some way, and that is incredibly emotionally powerful."

"I like it," Viola Duncan says.  "It gives me something to look forward to as well."

The Duncans say this hour of stepping and sliding has become one of the high points of their week.

"It keeps me going and keeps me happy," Viola Duncan says.

Her daughter agrees.  

"Good spirited, good vibes and happy faces," Sandra Duncan says.  "If you don't have good health, you don't have nothing."

Oak Street Health has 5 locations in Metro Atlanta.  

For more information, visit www.oakstreethealth.com.