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• Állattartó idősek egészségi állapota

  161-179

  Zolna Virginás

  Views:

  139

  The human is a complex being: a combination of biological, psychological and social factors.   Our lives are significantly influenced by worldwide social influences and communication networks. Animal husbandry is not only a way of life, but a daily social rite, with symbolic values and social interactions. Health requires harmony with nature, ourselves, our fellow human beings and the supernatural. The aim of my research is to examine the health status of elderly people and their interactions with animals.

• How can telemental health help reduce the loneliness and isolation of the elderly?

  50-54

  Anikó Panna Tóth

  Views:

  62

  The goal of the paper is to draw attention to the importance of telemental health and how it can contribute to reducing the loneliness and isolation of the elderly, by reviewing the literature. The author briefly presents how the use of digital technology has contributed to the social and mental health care of the elderly during the coronavirus epidemic, and what changes have taken place. The study concludes with recommendations for the use of ICT by social workers and the development of telemental health services for the elderly.

• Burnout syndrome in healthcare profession

  20-21

  Miroslava Bednáriková

  Lubica Libová

  Lívia Kollárová

  Lenka Zacharová

  Views:

  18

  Burnout syndrome is a current topic. Helping professions are most at risk. We include the profession of nurse to these professions. The work is demanding, it requires mental endurance and physical fitness. Nursing profession is one of the most risky one in relation to burnout syndrome.

• Dementia and family. The role of Alzheimer cafe in reducing the burden of caregiving families

  34-46.

  G. Kiss

  Views:

  199

  In the last years, the international researches have turned towards families caring for elderly people with dementia /see the works of Zarit et al. 1985, 2005; Aneshensel et al. 1995; and Kaplan 1996/. The majority of these researchers analysed the stress burden of the caring family member and its consequences, role conflicts, and the tensions in the caregiving family (Zarit et al. 1985; Aneshensel et al. 1995; Kaplan 1996; Zarit et al. 2005). The revelation that in terms of Romania, we know nothing or almost nothing about the burden of families caring for elderly people with dementia and its effect on the primary carer, played was an important factor in the choice of topic. This is why, in a vast empirical analysis, in Transylvania, 50 interviews and questionnaire surveys were made with people caring for elderly with dementia in their own homes and 50 families whose relatives with dementia have been moved to a long-term residential home in the past 12 months from the time of the survey. Gathering data took three years (2015–2017). The research included the inquiry interview with the primary caregiver family member, in which we assessed the functional barriers and the psychosocial difficulties (Szabó 2000). The analysis of the levels of social skills was built upon this, and it unfolded the main characteristics of self-sufficiency, existing social skills, and social adaptation. This survey pointed out the everyday tasks in which the client requires help. With regard to family care, we have also analysed the independent living ability of people with dementia. These three angles offered the guidelines for the assessment of “objective burden” of the caring family member. Reviewing the distribution of caring tasks within the family is based on this, which helps us finding out who the key persons are, the ones undertaking the primary caregiving duties. For analysing the formation of roles within the family, we have devised our own criteria (Szabó–Kiss 2015). Starting from the objective burden, in regard to the “subjective burden”, we have obtained valuable indications about the emotional effect of caregiving family member. The detailed assessment of self-sufficiency through which we have analysed the measure of functional degradation of people living with dementia, was added to the devices of the analysis (Szabó 2000). The internationally approved scale of memory and behavioural problems (Zarit 1985) is connected to this, which measures the distractive attitude of the person living with dementia and its effect on the primary caregiver. The survey of the primary caregiver’s burdening is also connected (Zarit 1985), and so is the assessment of the negative and positive attitude towards the caregiving tasks (Farran et al. 1999). A six-step focus group is added to the devices of the research, in which the primary caregivers, by hearing each other’s cases and following thematic questions, open up more easily about the critical periods of caregiving and the pivotal factors of institutional placement.

• A new approach to Hungarian elderly care in Romania. - Scientific and professional workshop at the Partium Christian University

  159-166

  Views:

  45

  Between October 20-21, 2022, the Human Sciences Department of Partium Christian University of Oradea in partnership with the Department of Social Work and Social Policy of the University of Szeged organized a scientific-professional workshop entitled New Perspectives in Elderly Care, in order to provide space and create a long-term opportunity for the meeting and dialogue of professionals working in the field of elderly care in Partium and Transylvania as institution managers, program managers, social workers, elderly caregivers, and researchers. The following review provides a retrospective of the event with the intention of formulating conclusions that will help moving forward.

• Culture on Prescription in Portugal: cultural experiences promoting health in lonely people and older adults

  11-13

  Juliana Louceiro

  Carina Dantas

  Natália Machado

  Jana Eckert

  Marcel Neumann

  Christiane Schlang

  Christine H. O’ Kelly

  Bart Borsje

  Views:

  15

  Social connections play a vital role in personal well-being. Loneliness, characterized by a lack of meaningful social engagement, has emerged as a significant public health concern in Europe, especially after COVID19 pandemic, when the problem was labelled by the media as a “loneliness epidemic” (Berlingieri et al., 2022). According to Casabianca & Kovacic (2022), older adults are especially vulnerable to loneliness due to all the life transitions and disruptive life events they face. Loneliness is more prevalent among Europeans aged 50 and above in southern and eastern regions (ranging from 31% to 46%) compared to western and northern areas (ranging from 10% to 30%).

• Satisfaction with the implementation of developmental tasks in the course of life and the sense of well-being in late adulthood

  31-33

  Hanna Liberska

  Views:

  55

  Introduction
  The subject of the sense of psychological well-being in people in late adulthood and its determinants has been of great interest for several dozen years among researchers and broad social groups, including people of senior age.
  Aims
  The aim of the presented research was to explain the relationship between coping with life challenges, which are developmental tasks culturally assigned to successive periods of adult life, and the sense of well-being in the last period of life. The study also drew attention to the importance of selected socio-demographic variables for the sense of well-being of people in late adulthood, namely gender, age, level of education, family situation and material (financial) condition. In line with the positive psychology approach, these factors were expected to be of limited importance for the sense of well-being.
  Methodology
  155 people aged over 65 (late adulthood) took part in the study, 53% of whom were men and 47% of women. The author's questionnaire was used to examine satisfaction with the implementation of developmental tasks (Liberska, 2019), the Mental Wellbeing Questionnaire (L.Wojciechowska, 2008) and a questionnaire collecting basic sociodemographic data. The analysis of the research results showed significant relationships between the implementation of developmental tasks and the sense of well-being. Age of the respondents did not differentiate the sense of well-being.
  Conclusion
  People's sense of well-being in late adulthood is related to coping with developmental tasks in adult life and the current family and economic situation.
  1. the results of the statistical analysis did not show statistically significant differences between men and women in the level of psychological well-being: t (152) = -0,63, p = 0,52 (women – M = 87,25, SD = 12,73; men – M = 88,52, SD = 12).
  2. people with higher education had a higher level of the general indicator of the sense of well-being than people with secondary (Z=-2.04, p=0.041), vocational (Z=-3.52, p=0.001) and primary education (Z=-3.22, p=0.01)
  3. financial status differentiates the sense of well-being of people in late adulthood: people with good economic status have a higher sense of well-being than people with average status (Z = -3.23, p = 0.001) and below average (Z = -2.03; p = 0.043)
  4. the results of the statistical analysis showed that people with different marital status differ in the level of mental well-being: married people in late adulthood have a significantly higher level of mental well-being than widowed people (Z=-3.18, p=0.001).
  5. among the six dimensions that create mental well-being, the highest value was obtained on the self-acceptance subscale; ANOVA shows significant differences between the subscales of the sense of well-being; F= 7829,05; p< 0,001; η2=0,99).
  Generally, this result confirms the importance of self-acceptance for the general psychosocial condition of a person (see Ryff, 1989).
  References:
  Liberska, H. (2019). Żródła satysfakcji z życia w starości. W: M.Kielar-Turska (red.), Siła umysłu w starości. Starość: jak ją widzi psychologia (s. 537-552). Kraków: Akademia Ignatianum.
  Ryff, C. D. (1989). Happiness Is Everything or Is It? Explorations on the Meaning of Psychological Wellbeing. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57, 1069-1081; http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.57.6.1069
  Wojciechowska, L. (2008). Style starzenia się a subiektywny dobrostan kobiet w późnej dorosłości, studiujących na uniwersytecie trzeciego wieku. Polskie Forum Psychologiczne, 2, 106- 123.

• Prevention is the key - a multidimensional model for social well-being of the elderly

  15-16

  Zsuzsanna Almassy

  Anita Szemán-Nagy

  Réka Farkas

  Adriána Csinády

  Views:

  29

  Our research group identified a huge need for research on social well-being in the elderly population. In Hungary so far not much has been published in this topic, however, understanding the key elements of well-being is a growing area of research in gerontology all around the world, since it is crucial how we manage our lives in old age.

• Interdisciplinary collaboration in geriatrics: implications for social work profession in Nigeria

  68-70

  Emmanuel Temitope Adaranijo

  Views:

  8

  With age comes the rising demand for health care and even more peculiarities to care giving. In addition to biological changes are socioeconomic factors that impact the health and treatment of the elderly population. The dynamics involved in providing adequate care for the elderly population as seen in developed societies reveals that there is no watertight compartment to knowledge and the need for interdisciplinary collaborations.

• Decade of Healthy Aging 2020-2030: international and local arctic context

  30-31

  Elena Golubeva

  Andrey Soloviev

  Views:

  19

  Healthy aging has become an important policy issue at all levels of the society. The key international document is the World Health Organization’s (WHO) plan for a Decade of Healthy Ageing 2020–2030 which is the 2nd action plan of the WHO ‘s Global strategy on aging and health [1]. The Plan consists of 10 years of concerted, catalytic, sustained collaboration to improve the lives of older people, their families, and their communities. Older people themselves are at the core of this plan, and it brings together a variety of actors: governments, civil society, international agencies, professionals, media, and the private sector. The Plan also notes that healthy aging is not only a healthcare issue but also needs to engage many other sectors.

• Ageism as social pathology in geriatric medicine

  31-32

  Andrei Ilnitski

  Kiryl Prashchayeu

  Views:

  5

  The main trend of modern geriatrics is to maintain a high functional ability, which consists of intrinsic capacity and environment. It is important to attach importance to the impact of the environment, including of its social component, when can promote the development of social pathology, for example loneliness or the consequences of ageism which can significantly reduce the quality of life.

• How can telemental health help reduce the loneliness and isolation of the elderly?

  2-29

  Anikó Panna Tóth

  Views:

  245

  In the study, based on a literature review, the author explains the concept of telemental health and how it can contribute to reducing the loneliness and isolation of the elderly. It covers the experiences of using ICT in the care of the elderly in Hungary, and also briefly presents how the use of digital technology has contributed to the social and mental health care of the elderly during the coronavirus epidemic, and what changes have taken place. The study concludes with recommendations for the use of ICT by social workers and the development of telemental health services for the elderly.

• Charitable organizations as a new visible source of support for older people during the COVID-19 pandemic in Russia

  25-26

  Elena Golubeva

  Views:

  8

  The activities of a third sector including non-governmental organizations (NGOs), charity foundations, and voluntary associations have received a new impetus during the COVID-19 pandemic their roles in supporting older people much widened compared to the time before the pandemic (Zobernyus et al. 2022).

• A Review of the AGE Barometer 2023: EU Good Practices and Barriers in the Empowerment of Elderly in the Labour Market - The Case of Hungary

  15-24

  Climson L. Balangue

  Ágnes Bene

  Views:

  19

  The 2023 edition of the AGE Barometer was released by the Age Platform Europe, aimed at consolidating data from European statistics and national-level sources and enriched by feedback from 19 European countries, including Hungary. The publication aimed at empowering older people in the labour market and promoting sustainable and high-quality working lives for them. The Barometer revealed that the European Union (EU) is far from reaching its 78% employment target for adults aged 20 to 64 with its current state of just 62.3%. This could be due to various barriers to the integration of older people in the labour market, which include inadequate supportive policies, ageism, and unfavourable workplace conditions. Conversely, these are broadly stated in the context of the EU; hence, a deeper analysis of these results, with a special focus on the case of a single country, such as Hungary, is relevant to establish a clearer understanding of the national and local framework of these findings and in determining facilitating policies and programmes as well as gaps in promoting elderly inclusion in the labour sector. Using various methods such as critical analysis, desk and literature review, and thematic analysis, this article examined the Barometer report and other relevant publications. The Barometer 2023 effectively provided general issues and actionable areas in supporting older people in the labour market, combating ageism, and ensuring an age-friendly work environment in the EU landscape. Moreover, it revealed that Hungary performed better in employing older persons compared to the EU average, likely associated with a favourable environment for older workers through its legal protection systems, financial incentives, equal treatment policy, and initiatives such as pensioner cooperatives and information technology education. However, this still falls below the target, and based on the analysis and review of existing relevant publications, this could be associated with some unfavourable policies, gender disparities, a continuous rise in the ageing population, an increased number of migrant workers, technology challenges, ageism, political mayhems, cultural and traditional constraints, and other challenges that continue to threaten the marketability of older people, thereby resulting in consequences for their financial, physical, social, psychological, and environmental wellbeing. Moreover, the report also stated few good practices in promoting elderly employment in the county, contrary to numerous efforts implemented by both the Hungarian government, non-government organisations, and other institutions, which remained unrecognised, perhaps due to limited data availability and gaps in the reporting schemes. Finally, the Barometer 2023 report was realized to be included and used as a part of the technical working papers of the European Economic and Social Committee, being the EU advisory body that deals on the issues and opinions regarding this matter. The latest edition of the Barometer has the potential to spark positive changes among policymakers and decision-makers in acknowledging the economic potential of the elderly and in eliminating barriers that hinder elderly integration in the labour market. In the case of Hungary, substantial policies, programmes, and welfare services exist that facilitate elderly employment; however, challenges were also identified, hence the precise recommendations provided in the Barometer report must transform into reality, taking into consideration the unique national, local, and cultural peculiarities of Hungary and its local communities. It is also suggested that systematic data collection and good practice documentation must be facilitated in Hungary, and feedback from the other 18 countries in the Barometer report must be thoroughly reviewed or benchmarked for possible inspiration and replication. Lastly, the potentials of the Barometer 2023 to be used at all levels of decision-making must be maximized.

• Elderly care out from the care system: the challenges of family carers

  2-24.

  A. M. Tróbert

  Zs. Széman

  Views:

  344

  The overburdened long term care system increases the role of family carers in taking care of older adults. Undertaking the role of care put a great burden to family carers and cause many negative effects to the family roles, the field of employment and to the carers’ personal physical and mental health too. The formal care system solely focuses for the need of care receivers and hardly find services targeted to family carers. This study, using the analisis of ten family caregiver interviews, overlaps the main difficulties they are facing.

• Activity in old age, active and successfull aging

  73-96

  Views:

  492

  Background and aims: The aim of our research was to qualitatively examine the attitudes of older people towards aging, the activity available and implemented from it, their community involvement, and their lay perceptions and opinions of successful aging.
  Methods: Semi-structured interviews were conducted during the research, and the interviews were evaluated by content analysis.
  Results an discussion: According to the elderly, successful aging mainly requires physical or mental health, maintaining activity, an active lifestyle, a positive outlook on life, a good family environment, social relationships, financial security, goals, motivation, successful life, advance planning, and social support.

• Health challenges of the elderly: a comparative study of the need for health social workers in Nigeria and Bangladesh

  11-14

  Emmanuel Temitope Adaranijo

  Sarafat Hossain

  Views:

  58

  The established fact is that the population with the highest consumer of healthcare services is the elderly because of the increasing demand for adaptive health services accessible to the elderly. As the elderly continue to age, there is a decline in the health condition, developed societies have explored and employed several multidisciplinary approaches to the care of the elderly. The focus is on social work as a profession.

• Starting from scratch: realities of older Maltese ex-sisters

  7-8

  Marisa Cannataci

  Maria Aurora Fenech

  Views:

  15

  Statistics have revealed how not only globally but also in Malta the number of women religious has decreased. This study delved into the experiences of older ex-sisters from apostolic congregations who held simple vows, lived in the convent, subsequently leaving the congregation.

• Attitudes of Roma/Gypsy Adults Towards the Care of Their Elderly Loved Ones

  30-45

  Dalma Tóth

  Irén Godó

  Views:

  108

  Caring for older people is a challenge for all societies. There has been a lot of research on elderly care to help make it as effective as possible. The aim of this study is to provide an overview of the Roma/Gypsy elderly care among ethnic minorities, using national and international trends. The choice of the target group in our framework was not accidental - the Roma/Gypsy minority is considered vulnerable in terms of several factors, which means risks for elderly care in terms of inequalities. In addition to the main concepts of elderly care, the paper will address the opportunities and constraints of the legal environment, the relationship between elderly care and health care, and the factors that shape quality of life and well-being, as well as strategies (formal and informal) that are emerging as trends at national and international levels.

• Trends of smoking and alcohol consumption after acute myocardial infarction – a gerontological meta-analysis

  66-67

  György Jóna

  Views:

  6

  The core aim of this conference presentation is to demonstrate how health behaviors of elderly social groups could be shifted by perceived social support (PSS) after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). More precisely, this presentation focuses on examining how elderly people could quit smoke and accept moderate alcohol consumption by PSS to improve their complex health conditions.

• Meaning for the years – thoughts about the social and human science gerontology

  13-25.

  S. Simigné Fenyő

  Views:

  156

  The study consists of a theoretical and a practical part. Relying on the relevant literature and
  the practice of the world’s developed countries, the theoretical part outlines the social
  problems arising as a result of the increasing life expectancy. At the same time it seeks to find
  possibilities of solutions to these problems. It clarifies the notions of ageing and retirement
  age, Life Long Learning, and within this, the beneficial health effects of language learning. In
  addition, this part of the study introduces useful forms of activities that make sense and have
  meaning late in life. The empirical part describes the results of a survey made in Miskolc
  before the conference of gerontology in November 2017.

• The impact of some elements of digitisation and education for the elderly - before the quarantine situation

  29-51

  Views:

  506

  Digitalisation is one of the most important elements of the changes of the 21st century. The study describes the social impact of some areas of digitalisation, especially for the older generations. Beyond the health aspects there are two areas - the supporting power of the community and the fight against loneliness - which give the core of the social importance of the innovative solutions in Hungary.

• Az IKT használata az aktív és egészséges időskor támogatásában és az idősgondozásban

  130-132

  Anikó Panna Tóth

  Views:

  185

  Európa népessége elöregszik, a 65 év felettiek és a munkaképes korú népesség aránya 2050-ben már 1:2 lesz, ami feszültséget teremt a generációk között (Európai Bizottság 2013). A demográfiai helyzet bemutatása kapcsán fontos megjegyezni azt is, hogy az előrejelzések szerint a 80 évesnél idősebbek száma 2080-ig várhatóan több, mint kétszeresére nő és eléri a teljes népesség 13%-át (http1), ennek a korosztálynak pedig már nagy része gondozásra szorul. Mindez jelentős kihívás elé állítja az egészségügyi és szociális ellátórendszereket, melyek már ma is jelentős jelentős humánerőforrás hiánnyal és várólistákkal működnek, idősek otthonában történő elhelyezésre például hazánkban az átlagos várakozási idő 2 év (Gyarmati 2019). A gondozást végző családtagokra - jellemzően nőkre - hatalmas anyagi, fizikai és lelki teher hárul.
  Az előadásban azt mutatom be, hogy az elöregedésből adódó kihívások kezelését, az idősek gondozását és életminőségük javítását miként segíthetik az infokommunikációs technológiák és az innovatív megoldások. A rendelkezésre álló kutatási eredmények alapján ismertetem, hogy az idősek hogyan viszonyulnak a digitális technológia igénybevételéhez, milyen attitűdjeik vannak az IKT használatával kapcsolatban. Áttekintem a gondozási szükségleteket és hiányokat, valamint az ápolás, gondozás, az egészséges és biztonságos környezet biztosítása, a kommunikáció és a mentálhigiénés szolgáltatások területén történő technológia használat lehetőségeit. Erre vonatkozóan röviden bemutatok példákat, jó gyakorlatokat. Megvizsgálom, hogy milyen előfeltételek szükségesek az IKT alapú szolgáltatások bevezetéséhez, milyen tényezők akadályozzák az alkalmazásukat és, hogy milyen kihívásokkal kell szembenéznünk.

  Az előadás fő üzenete és mondanivalója, hogy az idősek aktív, tevékeny időskorát, illetve szükség esetén ellátását, gondozását nagyban támogathatják az infokommunikációs technológiák (Bene, Móré, Zombory 2020). Fontos azonban a technorealista hozzáállás, objektíven, realistán kell viszonyulnunk a technológia használathoz (Pintér 2004), nem szabad tőle tartanunk, de túl sem értékelhetjük. Önmagában attól, hogy több technológiát használunk nem lesz jobb a helyzet, nagyon fontos, hogy a fejlesztések valóban az idősek igényeire, adottságaira, szükségleteire reagálva történjenek, a tervezésébe bevonják az időseket, gondozóikat, a szociális és egészségügyi szakembereket. Meg kell oldani a finanszírozás kérdését is, egyrészt, hogy legyen forrás a fejlesztésekre, másrészt a használat, igénybevétel finanszírozását, lehetőséget teremtve a hátrányos helyzetűeknek. Ez azért is fontos, mert bár sokaknak lenne igénye innovatív eszközök használatára, nem mindenki engedheti ezt meg magának és azt is tudjuk, hogy az idősek közt a jövedelmi egyenlőtlenségek növekednek, „az Unió idős népességének 19 %-át szegénység fenyegeti, és ez a szám gyorsan növekszik” (Európai Bizottság 2013: 3). Probléma, hogy a technológia használat hatásairól és a szociális munkások IKT használatáról nagyon keveset tudunk, kérdés, hogy mennyire hatékonyak az online beavatkozások, milyen szakmai, etikai kérdéseket vet fel a technológia használata és, hogy milyen hatása van a társadalmi egyenlőtlenségek alakulására. Ezen kérdések vizsgálatára további kutatások szükségesek. Nagyon fontos a szociális munkás hallgatók képzésének és a szakemberek továbbképzéseinek átalakítása, hogy azokban nagyobb hangsúllyal jelenjen meg a digitális műveltség fejlesztése (Perron, Taylor, Glass, Margerum-Leys 2010, Tóth 2017).

  Irodalom
  Bene Á., Móré M., Zombory J. (2020). A digitalizáció néhány elemének időseket érintő hatásai – Karantén előtti helyzetkép. Magyar Gerontológia, 12(39), 29–51.
  Gyarmati A. (2019): Idősödés, idősellátás Magyarországon. Helyzetkép és problémák. Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung. Budapest. http://library.fes.de/pdf-files/bueros/budapest/15410.pdf Utolsó letöltés: 2019.04.27.
  Európai Bizottság (2013): A BIZOTTSÁG JELENTÉSE AZ EURÓPAI PARLAMENTNEK ÉS A TANÁCSNAK. A saját lakókörnyezetben való életvitel segítését szolgáló közös program végső értékelése https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/HU/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52013DC0898&from=hu Utolsó letöltés: 2019.04.27.
  Perron, B. E., Taylor, H. O., Glass, J. E., Margerum-Leys, J. (2010): Information and Communication Technologies in Social Work. Advances in Social Work, 11(2). 67–81. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3117433/ (utolsó megtekintés: 2017. 06. 25.).
  Pintér R. (2004): A magyar információs társadalom fejlődése és fejlettsége a fejlesztők szempontjából. Doktori disszertáció, ELTE-TÁTK http://mek.oszk.hu/02300/02336/02336.pdf
  Tóth A. P. (2017): Professzionális és etikus IKT-használat a szociális munka gyakorlatában – a nemzetközi ajánlások áttekintése. Párbeszéd − Szociális munka folyóirat 4 (3). https://ojs.lib.unideb.hu/parbeszed/article/view/5951/5562

  Internetes források:
  http1
  https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=Population_structure_and_ageing/hu&oldid=409489 Népességszerkezet és a népesség elöregedése, Eurostat (Utolsó megtekintés: 2021.12.02.)

• The role of volution and social effects in grandparental care

  107-118.

  A. Csinády

  Views:

  137

  The role of grandparents is very important in our lives both as parents and as grandchildren. The care provided by them is an emotionally influential experience that also serves as an attachment pattern. The grandparents, especially the grandmothers, have had a role in the survival of grandchildren since ancient times. Presumably it was the postmenpausal women, the grandmothers, whom made it possible that human children began to have a long developmental period, which is of great importance in human cognitive evolution.
  However, there are a number of questions about grandparental help, answered by researchers with both evolutionary and social explanations. These studies take into account how the grandmother's role appeared during human evolution, what factors influence grandparental help and how the parents and grandchildren will relate to it.

• Staff Training and Stress in Long Term Care Facilities Special Care Units for Alzheimer's Elders

  43-44

  S. Jean Szilagyi

  Views:

  49

  Objective:
  Special Care Units (SCU) in long term care health facilities are named to indicate "unique to diagnosis" or a level of care. The purpose of this study was to explore perceptions among caregivers and licensed nurses in selected nursing homes in Ohio and Pennsylvania and New York, as they pertained to the differences in care to Alzheimer's elders in SCUs. It examined the education and experience of staff and the satisfaction of this staff as it pertained to stress and wages.

  Background:
  Long-term caregivers often experience stress, resulting in "burn-out" as a consequence of limited training, levels of care required, cognitive decline of elders and family expectations. The caregivers, on SCUs, environmentally designed for the elders with cognitive decline, need specialized training in the physical and mental dimensions of the various forms of dementia, Alzheimer's type.

  Methods:
  The study used a qualitative research design with a survey questionnaire and one-on-one interviews with administrators and human resource directors. A pilot study of SCUs in Ohio and Pennsylvania and New York was initiated. The population was the employees of these SCU. The levels of employees questioned included: Executive director/Administrator, nurses, nurse aides, housekeepers and activities staff, laundry and social service workers. The procedure was standardized to enhance the reliability of the data. The respondents were notified in advance of the specific application of their answers and were afforded the opportunity to receive a monetary donation to the SCU of their respective facilities.
  An Eden Alternative Home, with a program of goals and missions characterizing enhancement of an elder's life, a home-like environment and family-centered staff and care, in a very rural area of Pennsylvania, was also engaged to contrast and compare the hypotheses of the study.

  Results:
  On the SCU, less than 5 percent of the staff had received training specific to the care of the Alzheimer's elders. In the Eden Home, 100 percent of the staff had received training specific to the care of the Alzheimer's elders. On the SCU, less than 18 percent were satisfied with the quality and quantity of specialized and extensive training. In the Eden Home, 100 percent of the staff was satisfied with their specific training. On the SCU, using a Leiken scale, more than 55 percent felt that they should receive higher wages. In the Eden home, the results were the same. However, the longevity of the employees was 13.5 years as opposed to only 3.25 years in the SCU in other homes.

  Conclusion:
  These findings suggest there is a need to examine, expand and intensify the training of all caregivers on a special unit for the elders afflicted with dementia, Alzheimer's type.