Even before COVID-19 reared its head, roughly 50 percent of U.S. adults reported experiencing measurable levels of loneliness.

Social isolation and loneliness are at epidemic levels, reports U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, prompting his office to recently issue a Surgeon General Advisory to raise awareness about the health impacts of social disconnection.

“It’s been an underappreciated public health crisis,” Murthy said in a press release, “that’s harmed individual and societal health.”

For example, adults who lack social connection increase their risk of premature death by 60 percent—about the same amount as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Older adults with limited human connection increase their risk of dementia by 50 percent. And loneliness can increase a person’s risk of heart disease and stroke by approximately 30 percent.

These sobering statistics, as well as prompting from USF College of Public Health’s (COPH) Dean Donna Petersen to address the issue, led the COPH’s Activist Lab to develop a program called “Let’s Chat.”

Let’s Chat is a community outreach program staffed by Activist Lab members who are available to chat and provide mental health materials to help end loneliness.

“The connection between loneliness and one’s health is astonishing,” said Dr. Karen Liller, director of the Activist Lab. “This is an epidemic among younger and older individuals and cannot be ignored. The Surgeon General’s report on this topic and his book ‘Together’ should be must-reads for the public health community.”

The first few Let’s Chat sessions were held at a local café, but members are now looking for new venues and partnerships.

“Over 25 individuals have signed up for the Let’s Chat Task Force, which is a partnership between the Activist Lab and the Florida Public Health Association,” Liller said. “Through the task force, we hope to learn from each other about effective strategies, implement the strategies and then evaluate our results. The ultimate goal is to provide ways to increase social connection and decrease loneliness across Florida and beyond.”

To get involved, contact the Activist Lab at COPHActivistLab@usf.edu.

Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health