People born 1940-1949 will be more demanding regarding help from the elder care than previous generations. The explanation often proposed is that people born in the 1940’s grew up after the Second World War when cultural changes took place in society. The aim of this qualitative study was to describe the social needs of people born in the 1940’s today, in order to make cautious assumptions about what type of social needs elder care is likely to face in the future, when the older people becomes in need of elder care. A hermeneutic interpretation was made of the interviews with four older people born in the 1940’s who are not in need of elder care at the moment, and one social care assistant. The results showed that people born in the 1940’s want to maintain their current interests and activities in the future. Demands from the 1940’s generation concerning request for help from elder care, will according to this study and previous research, increase, especially concerning social needs and relationships. The conclusion is that the 1940’s generation will have bigger demands on getting various social needs satisfied, but how those needs will be met by the elder care, is still an open question for the future. / Fyrtiotalisterna kommer att ställa mer krav angående hjälp från äldreomsorgen än vad tidigare generationer gjort och förklaringen sägs vara att fyrtiotalisterna växte upp efter kriget då ett kulturellt skifte förändrade samhället. Syftet med denna studie var att redogöra för vilka sociala behov fyrtiotalister har i dagsläget för att göra försiktiga antaganden om vilka sociala behov som äldreomsorgen kan tänkas möta i framtiden, när fyrtiotalisterna blir i behov av äldreomsorg. Intervjuer med fyra fyrtiotalister som idag inte har något behov av äldreomsorg och en biståndshandläggare låg till grund för studien och analysen genomfördes utifrån ett hermeneutiskt perspektiv. Resultatet visade att fyrtiotalisterna vill bevara sina nuvarande intressen och aktiviteter i framtiden. Kraven från fyrtiotalisterna kommer enligt denna studie och tidigare forskning att öka jämfört med tidigare generationer, speciellt när det rör sociala behov och relationer. Slutsatsen är att fyrtiotalisterna kommer ställa mer krav på att få olika sociala behov tillgodosedda, men hur dessa behov senare kommer att tillgodoses av äldreomsorgen är en öppen fråga för framtiden.

The general objectives of the study were to evaluate a social work support group programme with informal caregivers that aimed to enhance the quality of care provided to older persons in an urban and rural community setting in Namibia. In order to achieve the general objectives of the study, the following specific objectives were formulated: * To explore how informal caregiving situations in urban and rural communities lead to elder abuse and neglect. * To describe existing literature on the various factors that contribute to elder abuse and neglect within community settings. * To develop a support group programme for informal caregivers of older persons in urban and rural community settings that aimed at preventing elder abuse and neglect. * To implement and evaluate the effectiveness of the support group programme for informal caregivers that aimed at preventing elder abuse and neglect. The thesis consists of 5 sections: Section A consists of the problem statement, research objectives, central theoretical argument and the theoretical approaches that underpin the study. Furthermore, the research methodology, the definition of key concepts and the limitation of the study are presented. Section B contains four articles that together formed part of the research outcomes. Each article can function independently with it’s own objectives and distinctive content. However, each article is also a sub-project of the umbrella research study. Therefore, some of the data have to be repeated in different sections. The four articles are: Article 1: Informal caregiving, elder abuse and neglect in urban and rural areas of the Khomas region in Namibia: A needs assessment A needs assessment on informal caregiving situations and how it may lead to elder abuse and neglect of older persons from an urban and rural constituency in the Khomas region was explored. Data was collected through in-depth interviews with professional and community leaders. In addition, focus group discussions were held with older persons and informal caregivers in the urban and rural constituency. Article 2: Factors contributing to elder abuse and neglect in community settings In this article, a comprehensive review of the literature pertaining to the risk and protective factors to elder abuse and neglect was done. The ecological theory was worthwhile to describe the risk factors to elder abuse and neglect. Article 3: Designing a social work support group programme with informal caregivers of older people in Namibia A social work support group programme was developed for informal caregivers of older persons in community settings. The eight-week support group programme was developed based on a needs assessment and a comprehensive literature review, and included the following topics; the normal processes of aging, handling of difficult caregiving situations, caregiver stress, self-care of the caregiver, elder abuse and neglect and caregiver grief and loss. The planning model for group work was also utilised to design the group. Article 4: Evaluation of the effectiveness of a support group programme with informal caregivers to prevent elder abuse and neglect An eight-week support group programme with ten female informal caregivers from an urban group and twelve informal caregivers from a rural group setting was implemented and evaluated. Standardized measuring instruments that assessed the outcome of the group at pre-test, post-test and postponed post-test were the Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI), Potentially Harmful Behaviour (PHB) scale and the Caregiver Abuse Screen (CASE). The Group Engagement Measure (GEM) assessed the group processes at the fourth, sixth and eight group sessions. In addition, open-ended questions were used to collect qualitative data. The quantitative and qualitative evaluations indicated that both the urban and rural groups gained knowledge on aging and caregiving, and caregivers acquired vital qualities such as patience, compassion and communication skills. The process evaluation showed that caregivers from the urban group were more engaged in the group process than the rural group. Elder abuse was underreported in the study, while personal stress of caregivers reduced significantly because of the intervention. Section C consists of the summary of the most important findings and conclusions to the research study. In addition recommendations are provided. Section D consists of the annexures to the research report, such as the measuring instruments and interview schedules used for data collection. Section E contains a consolidated list of references. / PhD (Social Work), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

This essay has the purpose to explore what awareness women in their professional lives have over how the choices they make affect their pension. Together with the reasoning behind the choices who will later affect their economy in old age retirement. Through connections with staff at a kindergarden I found women who unconstrained choose to be apart of the study, consisting of women in working age in a relationship and they all had children. It was my intention to make a qualitative interview study where I interviewed women to get their thoughts and how they act in certain situations during their professional life. After I had conducted the interwiews I noticed that the results could be seen in relationship to norms and values in socitey. By using a norm theory the answers could be analysed and the norm that was constructed by the women was highlighted. As a complement to the norm theory i used a gender theory to explain why these women took those actions whom was highlighted in these interwiews. The act that was highlighted was that women take more parental leave than men which research proves affects womens economic in retirement negative and the norm that could be constructed was that men work full time.

This descriptive study with quantitative aspects examined the phenomenon of elder abuse through the systematic review of 60 cases of elder abuse. Cases were randomly selected from the files of an Adult Protective Services agency in the North Central Texas area. Research questions examined the characteristics of the victims and abusers, types and duration of abuse, descriptions of abusive situations, the reporting and verification of abuse, case management strategies utilized by caseworkers, and the consequences of those strategies. The results of this study point to the probability of the elderly abuse victim being 75 years of age or older, female, white, and widowed. There did appear to be some connection between race and type of abuse with white victims more likely to experience physical and financial abuse. Approximately half of the elderly abuse victims had severe limitations in physical and/or mental functioning leading to some degree of dependence upon their abusers. However, eighty percent of the elderly victims resided in their own homes and half of these individuals were functionally independent. This study provided descriptions of the various types of abuse that were observed: physical, financial, emotional, passive neglect, and active neglect. Financial abuse was noted most frequently, and multiple types of abuse were noted in most cases with the combination of physical, financial, and emotional abuse being observed most frequently. Fifteen different categories of case management strategies were examined, averaging four different assistance strategies per case. Legal services appeared to be the most often refused form of assistance. This study also found no evidence that those who abuse the elderly are being prosecuted.

The rationale for this study was based on the application of the cycle of domestic violence theory to elder abuse. It examined the effect of history of experienced childhood violence on tolerance, behavioral intentions, and past behaviors of elder abuse toward general and specific elderly targets. The effectiveness of educational interventions for altering tolerance and behavioral intentions of elder abuse was examined. Two hundred and twenty-five undergraduates were assessed for aging knowledge, general aging attitudes, aging anxiety, elder abuse attitudes, and elder abuse intentions and past behaviors. Participants were assigned to a High or Low Experienced Violence group and participated in an educational group or control group. Posttest and one-month followup measures were obtained. No differences were found at pretest between High and Low Violence. Level of Violence did not impact intervention efficacy. Elder abuse education altered attitudes, intentions, and behaviors of elder abuse at posttest significantly more than did aging education or control groups (p < .001), but these effects were no longer significant at followup. Elder abuse attitudes had higher relationships with elder abuse intentions and reported past behaviors than did global aging attitudes or aging anxiety (p < .05). General elderly targets yielded more tolerance, intentions, and reported past behaviors of elder abuse than did specific elderly targets (p < .001). Experienced childhood abuse was unrelated to elder abuse expression yielding no support for the role of cycle of violence in elder abuse. Specificity of target mediated elder abuse attitudes, intentions, and behaviors. Primary prevention interventions which aim to reduce tolerance and intentions of elder abuse should include specific information on elder abuse; aging education is ineffective for this goal.

Financial elder abuse is gaining increasing attention from researchers and policy makers. Such abuse can include theft of money as well as misuse of assets such as property. This research applied judgement analysis methodology to explore professional decision making in the context of such abuse and to identify the nature of the cues used to detect and prevent abuse. Participants included social care, health and banking professionals, who were established as key decision makers. In Phase I, semi-structured interviews (n = 63) were conducted. The critical incident technique was used to identify cue use and decisions taken in the most recent case experienced. Key cues for both social care and health professionals included the nature of the 'financial problem suspected', the older persons 'mental capacity' and the 'identifier of the abuse', this being whether the abuse was directly observed or instead reported by a third party. A separate cue used by health professionals was the individual's 'physical capacity'. Banking professionals did not use physical or mental capacity as cues, but independently considered 'who was in charge of the money'. Decisions made by social care professionals included determining whether safeguarding procedures should be implemented. In Phase II, a factorial survey approach was applied whereby social care, health and banking professionals (n=223) were presented with case scenarios incorporating the cues from Phase I in addition to cues from literature review. Multiple regression analysis and incremental F-tests identified the cues that explained a significant amount of the variance in judgements of certainty of abuse and likelihood of taking action. For example, for social care and health professionals this included the older person's mental capacity, and the nature of the financial problem suspected. The findings could be used to develop a training tool to enable other professionals to improve their strategies for detection and prevention of financial elder abuse.

The theme of my work is domestic violence against seniors. This phenomenon represents a serious social problem that deserves our attention. The theoretical part deals the types and specifics of violence. I describe the dynamics of violence, which occurs in such a damaged relationship. I try to describe possible solutions of this problem. In my work is also a list of organizations which can seniors contact. The practical part includes research on public awareness at the age 50+ of elder abuse. Here we can find the myths that appear in society and also hinder victims begin to solve their situation. Each of us may encounter violence. We should be able to identify the problem and knowing where to go for help. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

La presente investigación plantea que hay diferencias en la calidad de vida, según la participación social, en personas adultas mayores. Considerando 60 participantes para la muestra de personas adultas mayores del distrito de Ate, de las cuales 30 personas participan en un grupo social de la Parroquia Nuestra Señora Esperanza en Salamanca, y las otras 30 personas que no participan de algún grupo social. Se aplicó el Cuestionario de Calidad de Vida Whoqol – Bref, por el cual se pudo calcular los niveles de calidad de vida en ambos grupos, como así mismo, confirmar que no existen diferencias estadísticamente significativas como se había considerado. The following study aims to show the differences in life quality in relation to social participation among elders. The study counted with the participation of 60 elders from Ate district in Lima, Peru. The first group consisted of 30 elders, who participate in a social group in Nuestra Sra. de la Esperanza parrish. The second group consisted of 30 elders who did not participate in any social group. The Whoqol - Bref Life Quality test was used to measure different levels of life quality in both groups. At the same time, it helped to determinate differences in: social environment, relations, physical health and mental health, it also helped to confirm that there aren´t statistically significant differences like it was considered before.

Les sujets âgés sont souvent atteints de nombreuses comorbidités. Leur prise en charge thérapeutique selon les recommandations en vigueur peut être à l’origine d’une polymédication. La prescription de psychotropes est fréquemment retrouvée dans les traitements des sujets âgés. Cette classe thérapeutique est à haut risque iatrogène potentiel dans cette population vulnérable. Les effets indésirables médicamenteux les plus notables sont les chutes, les fractures et les troubles confusionnels. L’identification des psychotropes potentiellement inappropriés (PPI) chez les sujets âgés à l’aide de la liste de Beers a fait l’objet de peu de travaux.Les objectifs de cette thèse étaient d’identifier les prescriptions de psychotropes potentiellement inappropriés (PPI) à l’aide des listes de Beers actualisées dans les traitements de sujets hospitalisés ou vivant en Etablissement d’hébergement pour personnes âgées dépendantes (EHPAD). Les facteurs liés à ces prescriptions ont aussi été recherchés.La polymédication, ainsi que les troubles neuropsychiatriques du sujet âgé doivent rendre le prescripteur de psychotropes particulièrement vigilant dans cette population particulièrement vulnérable.L’usage des listes de médicaments potentiellement inappropriés (MPI) pourrait permettre d’identifier les psychotropes au rapport bénéfice risque défavorable chez les sujets âgés. Et orienter le choix du prescripteur vers des traitements plus favorables au patient. / Elderly people often have many comorbidities. Therapeutic management according to the recommendations in force may be at the origin of a polymedication. The prescription of psychotropic drugs is frequently found in the treatment of elderly patients. This therapeutic class is at high potential iatrogenic risk in this vulnerable population. The most notable adverse drug reactions are falls, fractures and confusion. The identification of potentially inappropriate psychotropic medications (PIP) in elderly subjects using the Beers list has received little attention.The objective of this thesis was to identify the prescriptions of potentially inappropriate psychotropic drugs (PIP) using the updated Beers lists in the treatment of subjects hospitalized or living in the nursing home. Factors related to these treatment s were also investigated.Polymedication, as well as neuropsychiatric disorders in the elderly, should make the prescriber of psychotropic drugs particularly vigilant in this particularly vulnerable population.The use of lists of potentially inappropriate medications (PIM) could identify psychotropic drugs with an unfavorable risk-benefit ratio in elderly subjects. And direct the choice of the prescriber towards treatments more favorable to the patient.

Thesis advisor: Ruth McRoy / Unmet long term care needs are increasingly filled by immigrant home health workers who are primarily female (88%), racial minorities (85%), and from developing countries including Mexico, Caribbean, Philippines, and Africa. The growing numbers of immigrant home health workers are a result of global factors including economic policies, colonial histories with developing countries, and immigration legislation. In addition to macro factors, personal motivations lead migrant home health workers to immigrate and find jobs in the U.S. Once in the U.S., little is known about migrant home health workers' caregiving experiences and work conditions. This study was designed to address this need and explored the personal experiences and viewpoints of the workers. Additionally information on migration histories and work setting was gathered to contextualize caregiving experiences. The study was guided conceptually by caregiving theory on the commodification and devaluation of "care" which can ultimately result in outsourcing care to immigrant women. Qualitative description methods were used to guide the research design, data collection, and analysis of twenty-three semi-structured interviews of female immigrant home health workers in Massachusetts. Interviews focused on three topics: caregiving experiences, reasons for migrating to the U.S., and work conditions. Findings will add to the knowledge base about immigrant home health workers paying particular attention to how workers themselves describe their experience which will in turn inform future policy and program initiatives on inclusion of a multicultural workforce into the long term care system. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2014. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Social Work. / Discipline: Social Work.