„Niekada negalvojau, kad čia gyvensiu“: vyresnio amžiaus asmenų persikėlimo į globos įstaigą kontekstas

Nursing home relocation is considered one of the most significant and stressful events in older age. Research shows that a variety of factors influence the decision to move to a nursing home and that the circumstances of the move have an impact on the post-move adaptation process and the quality of life in the nursing home. This paper aimed to reveal the context of the nursing home relocation of older people. Research data was gathered through life story interviews with 18 nursing home residents. Life story interviews were supplemented with semi-structured interview questions. The research revealed that the decision to move and the subjective experience of nursing home relocation is shaped not only by micro-environmental factors of an older person, such as health status or certain personality traits, but also by the conditions of the broader socio-economic, political and historical context. The interaction of these factors, which can be conditionally distinguished at the individual, family (community) and societal levels, creates a unique context in which older people decide to move to a nursing home. On an individual level, such factors as a person’s health, values and beliefs, personality traits, circumstances of the nursing home relocation and knowledge of possible alternatives to residential care affect the relocation decision-making. On the family or community level, the influence of family members, recommendations from social workers, doctors and acquaintances, community social support networks and access to social services play an important role. And lastly, on the societal level such factors as cultural norms and values (i.e. societal attitudes towards residential care and attitudes towards parental care), organisation of the social services system and history of the country (Soviet era) affect the nursing home relocation decision-making.Straipsnyje atskleidžiamas persikėlimo į globos įstaigą vyresniame amžiuje kontekstas. Interviu su 18 vyresnio amžiaus globos įstaigos gyventojų atskleidė, kad sprendimą persikelti ir persikėlimo subjektyvų patyrimą lemia ne tik tokie asmens mikroaplinkos veiksniai kaip sveikatos būklė ar asmenybės ypatumai, bet ir platesnio socialinio, ekonominio, politinio ir istorinio konteksto sąlygos, tokios kaip socia­linių paslaugų prieinamumas bendruomenėje ar kultūrinės nuostatos dėl vyresnio amžiaus asmenų globos. Straipsnyje detaliau aptariama unikalų kontekstą, kuriame vyresnio amžiaus asmenys priima sprendimą persikelti į globos įstaigą, kurianti sąveika tarp individualiu, šeimos / bendruomenės ir visuomenės lygmeniu pasireiškiančių veiksnių

Vyresnio amžiaus asmenų persikėlimo į socialinės globos įstaigą patirtis: literatūros apžvalga

[only abstract and keywords in English; full article, abstract and keywords in Lithuanian] Relocation to residential care facility in older age is considered as one of the most significant life transitions, that causes great deal of stress, depression and anxiety to the elderly. It is said, that transition to residential care facility is only slightly less stressful event than divorce or death of a spouse. After relocation older people are faced with a lot of unknowns in form of new people, new physical surroundings and new social demands. Relocation to residential care facility is a challenge for usual lifestyle: changes in one’s social network, loss of autonomy, reduced opportunities of maintaining favorite activities, adapting to new social and physical environment, attempts to create new home in residential care facility demand a lot of adaptive efforts from the elderly. These are the most common challenges to identity and well-being of the elderly. On other hand, relocation to residential care facility not only creates new challenges for elderly people, but also creates a new opportunities in form of new friends, new activities and sense of security since in case of emergency there are always staff close by. So there are possibilities of reconstructing one’s identity and maintaining well-being.[straipsnis, santrauka, reikšminiai žodžiai lietuvių kalba; santrauka ir reikšminiai žodžiai anglų kalba] Persikėlimas į globos įstaigą būnant vyresnio amžiaus yra vienas iš reikšmingiausių ir daugiausiai streso sukeliančių įvykių, dažnai pagal išgyvenimo kompleksiškumą lyginamas su sutuoktinio mirtimi ar skyrybomis. Persikėlimas į globos įstaigą yra iššūkis įprastam gyvenimo stiliui: vyresnio amžiaus asmuo turi nutraukti daugybę įprastų socialinių ryšių, mėgstamų veiklų, prisitaikyti prie naujos socialinės ir fizinės aplinkos, naujos dienos struktūros. Autonomijos ir kasdienių gyvenimo sprendimų kontrolės lygio sumažėjimas, santykių su šeimos nariais pokyčiai, bandymas sukurti naujus namus globos įstaigoje reikalauja nemažai adaptacinių pastangų iš vyresnio amžiaus asmens ir kelia iššūkį jo tapatumui ir gerovei. Kita vertus, persikėlimas į globos įstaigą ne tik sukuria vyresnio amžiaus asmenims naujus iššūkius, bet ir atveria naujų galimybių – nuolatinis personalo buvimas šalia užtikrina saugumo jausmą, yra galimybių susirasti naujų draugų, išbandyti naujus užsiėmimus, t. y. sudaro galimybių rekonstruoti tapatumą

Laisvalaikis ar laisvas laikas? Globos įstaigose gyvenančių vyresnio amžiaus asmenų patirtis

The amount of free time in older age significantly increases because of retirement. This period of life can be used for a beloved activity, be a source of self-development, a chance for new experience, rest, joy or even finance. On other hand, an increased amount of free time can cause issues and negative experiences like boredom, vacuity and the absence of something meaning in one’s actions. Engaging in personally meaningful leisure activities is characterized as one of the most effective ways to cope with changes in older age and also one of the key elements to successful aging.6 elderly people and 3 social workers of Vilnius social care institutions for elderly care participated in qualitative research. Ideas of social contructivism and the identity theories of Giddens (2000) were used for the analysis of data. Data of research showed that the understanding of leisure and the experience of it differentiates depending on individual possibilities to participate in personally meaningful leisure activities. A continuity of leisure activities helps in preserving a feeling of identity continuation; therefore, it is important to secure possibilities for elderly people to participate in leisure activities that were important to them in their adulthood.Dėl pasitraukimo iš darbinės veiklos padidėjęs laisvo laiko kiekis esant vyresnio amžiaus gali būti panaudojamas mėgstamai veiklai, tapti tobulėjimo, naujos patirties, ramybės, džiaugsmo ar net finansų šaltiniu. Kita vertus, laisvas, darbine veikla neužimtas laikas gali kelti ir sunkumų bei nemalonių jausmų, pavyzdžiui, lemti vyresnio amžiaus asmenų nuobodulį, beprasmybės ir neturėjimo, ką veikti, jausmus. Dalyvavimas asmeniškai prasmingoje laisvalaikio veikloje vienas iš efektyviausių būdų prisitaikyti prie esant vyresnio amžiaus vykstančių pokyčių ir pagrindinių sėkmingo senėjimo veiksnių.Kokybiniame tyrime dalyvavo 6 Vilniaus miesto socialinės globos įstaigose gyvenantys vyresnio amžiaus asmenys ir 3 jose dirbančios socialinės darbuotojos. Analizuojant duomenis buvo remiamasi socialinio konstruktyvizmo ir Giddens (2000) tapatumo teorijų idėjomis. Tyrimo duomenys atskleidė, kad vyresnio amžiaus asmenų laisvalaikio samprata ir jo patyrimas skiriasi pagal individualias galimybes dalyvauti asmeniškai prasmingoje laisvalaikio veikloje. Laisvalaikio veiklos tęstinumas padeda išsaugoti tapatumo tęstinumo jausmą, dėl to svarbu sudaryti vyresnio amžiaus asmenims galimybes globos įstaigoje tęsti veiklą, kuri buvo jų mėgstama brandos amžiuje

Motives for Assuming and Continuing Family Care: Family Caregivers’ Perspective

Studies have shown that the circumstances and motivation for becoming a caregiver are closely related to the caregiver’s well-being and the quality of care provided, which, in turn, affects the quality of life of the person receiving the care. This article aimed to reveal the motives behind decisions related to an aging relative’s care – motives to assume the caregiving duties and motives to remain in the caregiving role. In total, seven family caregivers participated in semi-structured interviews. Two main themes related to caregiving motivation were revealed: (1) motives to assume the caregiver role, and (2) motives to continue with family care. The results of the research were interpreted using the perspective of self-determination theory (Ryan & Deci, 2000; 2017). This study revealed that key motivational drivers of caregiving decisions were associated with the satisfaction of the three basic psychological needs – autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Meeting these needs in the context of caregiving not only strengthened the caregivers’ motivation to take on the caregiving role but also motivated them to continue with family care, even after the autonomy of care recipients had increased significantly

Integrating Technology into Social Work Practice and Study: Needs, Challenges, and Opportunities

This article reveals the views of Japanese and Lithuanian lecturers on the need for technological development in social work and the impact such development can have on the competencies of future social work professionals. 10 qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with lecturers from Lithuania and 8 with lecturers from Japan. The data analysis is based on Moor’s (2008) model of technological revolution, which consists of three stages: 1) introduction stage, 2) permeation stage and 3) power stage. The paper discusses the main categories that emerged from the data analysis: types of technology and their use in social work; personal characteristics, knowledge and skills needed by future social workers to integrate technologies into their practice; and value challenges for future social workers. The study revealed that technology integration in Lithuania is still at the introduction stage. At the theoretical level, there are discussions on the possible paradigmatic changes that the introduction of technology would bring to the social work field, at the practical level there is fragmented research on the impact of technical assistance tools on the quality of services, and in the area of values and ethics, questions about the benefits, risks and challenges of using technology are being addressed. In Japan, there is a deeper integration of technology into social work practice and studies, with more technology-oriented research, the development of the practice of technology use, and consideration of ethical aspects of technology use in practice. Lecturers in both countries fear that the rapid introduction of technology will cause the social work profession to lose its image as a “relational profession”. Furthermore, there are doubts about whether technology will help social work to fulfil its mission of social justice, as the issue of affordability of expensive technology is also raised. The views of the participants reflect concerns about changes in the identity of the social work profession, as seen through the changes in the knowledge, skills and values inherent in the profession, which are generated by the integration of technology and which lead to the idea of an emerging new identity for the profession

II kasmetinė nacionalinė socialinės politikos konferencija „Gyvenimo kelias ir jo krizės: kaip (ar) veikia Lietuvos socialinė politika?“

2022 m. spalio 14 d. Vilniaus universitete vyko II kasmetinė nacionalinė socialinės politikos konferencija „Gyvenimo kelias ir jo krizės: kaip (ar) veikia Lietuvos socialinė politika?“Universiteto g. 3, Vilniushttps://youtu.be/oBGfbjJijPY2022 m. spalio 14 d. Vilniaus universitete vyko II kasmetinė nacionalinė socialinės politikos konferencija „Gyvenimo kelias ir jo krizės: kaip (ar) veikia Lietuvos socialinė politika?“Universiteto g. 3, Vilniushttps://youtu.be/oBGfbjJijP

Socialiai globojamų vyresnio amžiaus asmenų įgalinimo aspektai: Some aspects of empowerment of elderly nursing home residents

Geresnis įgalinimo ypatumų globos įstaigos aplinkoje supratimas padeda modeliuoti socialinio darbo metodus taip, kad jie prisidėtų tiek prie socialinių darbuotojų veiklos pasitenkinimo ir efektyvumo, tiek prie aukštesnės socialiai globojamų vyresnio amžiaus asmenų gyvenimo kokybės. Globos įstaigų darbuotojų ir gyventojų įgalinimo ypatumai straipsnyje analizuojami Ryan ir Deci (2000) apsisprendimo teorijos perspektyvoje.There is a common perception that in residential care facilities the power and responsibility for care process related decisions lie with the professionals, while the older person is seen as the passive recipient of a service who cannot or does not want to participate in this process. In order to assure wellbeing and a higher quality of care adapted to the needs of elderly residential care residents it is important to provide them with opportunities to gain more power to control decisions related to the care process. The concept of “empowerment” becomes very important when changing traditional resident and staff relationships attributed to residential care facilities. Empowerment of nursing home residents and staff is a two-sided process – one side must be willing to share some power and responsibility; the other side must be ready and willing to accept it. Empowerment of nursing home residents often results in provision of higher quality care services that are better suited to the needs of the residents and encourages their sense of control of their lives. Empowerment of nursing home staff creates opportunities to provide higher quality care services and also causes increased job satisfaction. As social work, according to the internationally accepted definition, is a human rights profession, its practitioners must be able to understand peculiarities of their working environment that affect both their practice and the quality of life of their clients. Analysis of the literature revealed that studies on peculiarities of empowerment of older people are quite rare, hence the analysis of empowerment factors presented in this study may serve as a basis for designing new social work methods that would help to increase both social worker’s job satisfaction and effectiveness and the quality of life of elderly nursing home residents. The analysis of power relationships in a residential care setting is based on the ideas of Ryan and Deci (2000) self-determination) theory.Geresnis įgalinimo ypatumų globos įstaigos aplinkoje supratimas padeda modeliuoti socialinio darbo metodus taip, kad jie prisidėtų tiek prie socialinių darbuotojų veiklos pasitenkinimo ir efektyvumo, tiek prie aukštesnės socialiai globojamų vyresnio amžiaus asmenų gyvenimo kokybės. Globos įstaigų darbuotojų ir gyventojų įgalinimo ypatumai straipsnyje analizuojami Ryan ir Deci (2000) apsisprendimo teorijos perspektyvoje