Loneliness during inpatient rehabilitation: Results of a qualitative study

The current study provides evidence of patient loneliness during inpatient rehabilitation, an incidental, yet important finding from a qualitative study. Patients, staff and community volunteers in our rehabilitation centre completed semistructured in-depth interviews that were subjected to a thematic analysis. Results indicated that some patients had unmet social needs and experienced profound loneliness despite being surrounded by staff and patients. Further investigation to quantify the prevalence, intensity and effects of loneliness during inpatient rehabilitation is warranted.