Jackson, 16, has just lost his father to cancer and has nowhere to go so he drops out of high school to look for work. Chrissy, 18, and a recovering addict, sometimes wakes up still thinking about the drugs. She doesn’t use the drugs, but she says that she still needs them. Steph, 20, is on a path towards ‘normal expected success’ when past trauma re-enters her every day. She takes all her prescribed pills on multiple occasions to end her life because her family doesn’t believe the abuse she describes. She tells me she can’t think about the future because she still has to be alive to deal with it. And Mark, 22, has been homeless for 5 years, not consecutively, but long enough to equate home with the streets more than with the times he’s had a roof over his head. These are some of the everyday lives of young people included in this dissertation. Using the case of one organization that operates across a rural and urban context in Ontario, Canada, I investigate the organization of social services for youth. Throughout I show that if young people experience forms of marginalization, and disadvantage like those described above in an urban context, they will likely know about and have access to local support centres, coordinated organizational processes, referral programs, and a network of social resources that are able to address their multiple and complex needs. The rural context, however, works in drastically different ways, even when the services are expected to be the same. In other words, the geographical location operates as a social force that shapes both young people’s experiences of, and organizational responses to, inequality. In the pages that follow I explore how intersecting social processes alleviate forms of disadvantage experienced by youth in urban settings, and paradoxically, reproduce and sustain forms of inequality experienced by rural youth. Importantly this research shows that the geographical location of people in disadvantaged positions matters to the ways that the experience unfolds. Getting out of marginalized positions for rural youth is more challenging because the rural setting is not set up to do this work; in other words, compared to urban settings, the rural context is unequally placed. / Dissertation / Candidate in Philosophy

Background: Evidence has shown that family and friend caregivers of stroke survivors are significantly and negatively impacted by caregiving. The negative effects of caregiving may persist over time suggesting the need for ongoing care and support. However, little is known about caregivers’ use of formally funded health and social services or the factors influencing their access to and use of these services. Purpose: To increase understanding of: (a) the context of providing care for a stroke survivor; (b) the experiences of stroke caregivers in accessing and using formal health and social services; and (c) the factors that influence stroke caregivers’ use of formal health and social services, from the perspective of stroke caregivers and healthcare providers. Methods: A qualitative study was conducted using interpretive description. In-depth interviews were conducted with caregivers of survivors who experienced a stroke between six months to five years ago and healthcare providers who support caregivers and stroke survivors. Constant comparison was used to identify codes and develop key thematic constructs. Results: Interviews were conducted with 22 stroke caregivers at an average 30 months post-stroke and 18 health providers. Key findings include: (a) few caregivers use services, (b) caregivers face challenges accessing services, (c) services used by stroke survivors benefit caregivers, and (d) factors influencing stroke caregivers’ use of services include: adequacy of social support networks, finances and transportation, and trust in leaving the stroke survivor under the care of health providers. Conclusion: Stroke caregivers experience significant challenges in accessing and using formal health and social services. These challenges could be addressed by increasing availability of subsidized community-based supports such as respite and counselling tailored to meet the ongoing needs of caregivers. Systemic change is needed by the health system that readily includes and supports caregivers throughout the stroke recovery continuum, particularly in the community setting. / Dissertation / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Caregivers often experience challenges supporting stroke survivors. Their caregiving role may negatively affect their health and ability to return to their previous lifestyle. Little is known about stroke caregivers’ use of funded supportive services. The purpose of the study was to better understand caregivers’ experience using health and social services as well as the factors that influenced their access to and use of these supportive services. Findings showed that: (a) few caregivers use services despite expressing a need for these services (e.g. counselling), (b) caregivers struggle to trust the health providers supporting the stroke survivors, (c) caregivers’ social lives are often greatly affected by their caregiving role which in turn impacts their need for services, and (d) caregivers pay many financial costs when using supportive services. Overall, better ongoing assessment of stroke caregivers is required including using tailored services to meet their needs and help them in their caregiving role.

No / This publication Fathers Matter is the culmination of a two year project which has looked at the largely neglected area of fathers involved with social care agencies because of child welfare needs or concerns. The publication includes a series of research reports, including new analyses of fathers¿ experiences, an international literature review and the results of a survey of local authorities. The publication considers the implications of this research and sets out clear recommendations for Children¿s Services Departments, health services and national government.

In the UK it is established that health and social care services for people with dementia from black and minority ethnic communities need to move towards providing evidence-based culturally appropriate care. At present, however, the evidence base available to guide professionals working with people with dementia from diverse ethnic and cultural groups is limited, and beliefs about dementia and the type of treatment and support needed have received little attention. Consequently this creates problems for service providers faced with appropriately supporting people with dementia and their families from black and minority ethnic communities.

The aim of this work is to make SWOT analysis of social services in municipality Železný Brod, point out deficiencies in this area, possibilities for improvement or danger of future evolution. Conception of social services has wider sense in this work. Services, which nearly communicate with social services, are included as well. Because of demographic analysis of the region, which is taken over from Medium-term plan of development of social services in The Liberec Region, SWOT analysis has three main target groups of inhabitants -- seniors, unemployment people and families with children at the pre-school age. There is used information from providers of social services as well as from inhabitants of municipality through interviews. The aim of this work is not only aggregate SWOT analysis. Outcome is also to find out, which area of social services could private sector (profit or non-profit) operate in.

Social services represent an outstanding part of social policy of each country. They should maintain a standard of living and personal dignity, help in comeback to the society and prevent people from social exclusion. The aim of my thesis was Social Services Provided by G-centre in Tábor Before and After the Law 108/2006 About Social Services Came Into Force. The research part be composed of quantitative and qualitative method. In order to find the corresponding information, we have used the techniques of SWOT analysis and secondary and content analyses.

In the society, due to many changes in demographic population development, it should be paid more attention to the adequate setting of the social security system to avoid the social risks. One of the pillars of social security system in the Czech Republic is social care, which also includes social services. After 1989 the setting of social services was not effective, did not respond asked needs and there was no space for development. The Act No. 108/2006 Coll., on social services, which the social services are currently defined, is a prerequisite for the current organization of social services. This diploma thesis compares the expenditures expended on social services before the effectiveness of this Act, in the period 1996-2006, and in its period of validity, 2006.

The goal of this thesis is to find out if the investment into the home for elderly is profitable. The development, specification and financing of the social services is described in the theoretical part of the thesis. The practical part of the thesis consists of detailed financial analysis of particular home for elderly. This part includes selected costs and revenues of the retiree home and their tendencies.

Abstract Social services are rendered to those citizens, who require them considering their health, age or unfavourable social situation and who are unable of overcoming their social burdens and less than auspicious circumstances without external aid. Social services are essential not just because many people require them but particularly because were they not to be available, a large part of the public would lose their ability to participate in all aspects of life in a society. This would make it impossible for their human and civil rights to be upheld and lead to their exclusion from society. Social development, more favourable living standards, progress in the field of medicine and championing of social rights result in less people dying in childhood or at a productive age nowadays than before. It can be argued that the number of pensioners will be constantly increasing and that this is an accompaniment of a successfully developing civilisation. Because of their numbers, pensioners are becoming an exceptionally grave subject of social exclusion. It is therefore imperative that we realise the disadvantages the elderly face and devote appropriate attention to the issues surrounding the planning of social services. In terms of the set objective, it is necessary to evaluate and compare individual mid-term plans for the development of social services at certain locations and also to compare and evaluate the communal plans of selected cities. The dissertation proved that it is indeed necessary to pay due attention to the studied planning of social services. This is because there is a need to harmonise supply and demand in relation to social services. Ensuring the availability of a high-quality social services network for the elderly is only possible given the presence of a complex concept of social and medical care. One must however always take into consideration not just the current demographic trends but also the circumstances in the particular area as well as the degree of interest of the various subjects who are immediately involved in the issues surrounding the particular type of social services. One can undoubtedly say that the quality of social services on offer (not just for the elderly) is increasing both in relation to law No. 108/2006 Col. regarding social services but also in accordance with the recipients? wishes and demands.

Tyrimo objektas – socialinių paslaugų kokybė. Tyrimo dalykas - socialinių paslaugų kokybės vertinimas. Tyrimo tikslas – parengti socialinių paslaugų kokybės vertinimo modelį ir išbandyti jį vertinant socialinių paslaugų namuose kokybę Mažeikių rajone. Uždaviniai: 1. Išanalizuoti socialinių paslaugų kokybės sampratą, klasifikavimą bei socialinių paslaugų rūšis. 2. Nustatyti socialinių paslaugų kokybės vertinimo kriterijus. 3. Parengti socialinių paslaugų kokybės vertinimo modelį. 4. Įvertinti socialinių paslaugų namuose kokybę Mažeikių rajone naudojant sukurtąjį modelį. Tyrimo laikotarpis: 2000 m. – 2007 m. Tyrimo metodai: mokslinės literatūros, monografijos, dokumentų analizė ir sintezė, interviu, anketinė apklausa, indukcija bei dedukcija, loginio mąstymo bei grafinio vaizdavimo metodai. / The subject of research - quality of social services The object of research - evaluation of social services quality. The purpose of work – to formulate a model of social services quality evaluation and test it evaluating social services at home quality in Mažeikiai district. Tasks: 1. To analyze conception of social services quality, classification and type of social services. 2. To define criterions of social services quality evaluation. 3. To formulate a model of social services quality evaluation. 4. To evaluate social services at home quality in Mažeikiai district using made-up model. Time of exploration: 2000 – 2007 year. The methods of research: analysis and synthesis of monographs, scientific literature and documents, interview, questionnaire poll, induction, deduction, logical thinking and graphical representation methods.