The purpose of the essay was to investigate how older people's self-determination inretirement home is met, this through the care staff's perspective. To get an answer on thepurpose we used a qualitative method where we interviewed six care staff. Five of these weretrained assistant nurses and one of them worked as a care assistant, all interviewed haddifferent years of experience from the profession. Qualitative content analysis was used toanalyze the data collected through the interviews. Through the qualitative content analysis,several steps have been performed to analyze data, the work consisted of among other things,finding units of meaning, codes and then formulating themes. The results showed that theolder person, living in retirement home, may decide for himself at certain points in everydaylife. At the same time, the older person is not allowed to decide for himself to a greater extent.This dependes on both lack of time and care staff, additional factors that are affected by olderpeople's right to self - determination were physical and / or cognitive impairment. The resultwill also be that the care staff have an established value base of workers with and which isimplemented in their daily work. An analysis was made using the theoretical concept,motivation. The analysis showed, among other things, that external motivation, pressure fromthe chief in the form of lack of time and care staff lead to the elderly person not being met withself-determination to a greater extent. It also emerged from the analysis that internalmotivation in the form of dialogue and feedback from the chief at workplace meetingsregarding values base could contribute to increasing self-determination for the elderly inretirement home.

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka relationen mellan hund och boende på äldreboende i olika vardagssituationer samt hur relationen mellan hund och äldre på äldreboende påverkar den äldres välbefinnande. Deltagande observationer samt en kompletterande semistrukturerad intervju har använts för att införskaffa data. Observationerna genomfördes under hundträffar på ett äldreboende och det var även på äldreboendet den semistrukturerade intervjun genomfördes. Datamaterialet analyserades genom tillämpning av Goffmans interaktionsteori och Aaron Antonovskys teori känsla av sammanhang (KASAM). Resultatet påvisade att hundar bidrog med glädje och engagemang hos de äldre under den direkta interaktionen. Hundarna hade en stor betydelse för hur interaktionerna utformades. Det är även möjligt att hundträffarna bidrog till en mer meningsfull vardag för de äldre. Utifrån detta kan hundträffar antas vara en betydelsefull insats som skulle vara effektiv hos institutionaliserade äldre. Insatsen skulle även kunna vara betydelsefull inom andra målgrupper men för att detta ska säkerställas krävs vidare forskning på området. Sammanfattningsvis har studien förhoppningsvis bidragit till att förbättra förståelsen för en insats som kan motverka problemet med ensamhet inom den institutionaliserade äldrevården. / The aim of this study is to examine the dog resident relationship in a nursing home within different everyday situations. In addition, the aim is also to examine how the relationship between a dog and the elderly in a nursing home affects the well-being of the elderly. Participant observations and a complementary semi-structured interview have been used to acquire data. The observations were carried out during dog meetings at a nursing home, which was also the case with the semi-structured interview. The data was analysed through Goffman's interaction theory and Aaron Antonovskys theory Sense of Coherence. The results showed that dogs contributed to the happiness and commitment of the elderly during their direct interaction. The dogs had a great influence over the interactions. It is also possible that the dog meetings contributed to a more meaningful everyday life for the elderly. Based on this, dog meetings can be assumed to be a significant intervention that would be effective in institutionalized elderly. The effort could also be significant within other target groups, but to ensure this, further research in the area is required. In summary, the study has hopefully contributed to improving the understanding of an intervention that can counter the problem of loneliness within institutionalized care for the elderly.

This diploma thesis is focused on providing speech therapy intervention for seniors in residential facilities. The aim of this special pedagogical work is to show the problems in the communication of seniors and a possible support in the home for the elderly. The thesis has two parts. The theoretical part is divided into three chapters. In this part, secondary communication disorders observed among adults, selected diseases related to old age, the definition of old age and residential services for seniors are described. In the empirical part, the research, case studies and the results are obtained. The research is qualitative. The main goal was to analyze providing speech therapy intervention in the home for the elderly. Partial goals were to find out whether there would be a progress in the senior communication based on speech therapy intervention and to find out whether the support of home workers in cooperation with an expert can help in this regard as well. Another goal was to elaborate case studies. KEYWORDS Speech therapy intervention, senior, secondary communication disorder, dementia, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, retirement home

The diploma thesis focuses on the quality of life of seniors with hearing impairment. The thesis involves introduction into hearing impairment as well as its definition, occurrence and classification of hearing disorders. The etiology, diagnostics and hearing prosthetics are also included. The thesis also includes the issue of aging and the aging process, including social services and facilities for the elderly. The last chapter of the theoretical part deals with the quality of life, explains the established approaches, current models and methods of measurement. In the practical part of the thesis, a combined research was carried out. Data collection was carried out through semi-structured interviews with hearing impaired seniors as well as through questionnaires with experts in the field of ENT and phoniatrics. The aim of this research was to find out in which specific areas of the quality of life have the seniors recognized the largest decrease. Research questions were focused, for example, on the ways elderly people with hearing impairment deal with this disorder, on the choice of compensatory aids and on the degree of integration into society in dependence on the hearing impairment. KEYWORDS senior, retirement home, aging, hearing impairment, compensatory aid, quality of life, communication

Nous nous interrogeons sur les enjeux de la présence animale au sein d’une institution médico-sociale pour tenter de répondre aux controverses juridiques, mais également managériales, que soulève cette question. Notre questionnement s’inscrit dans une évolution sociétale favorable à la reconnaissance citoyenne de la personne âgée dépendante, et plus particulièrement dans ses droits sociaux et culturels. Notre problématique renvoie aux questions essentielles sur le pouvoir d’une personne vieillissante de décider elle-même de la conduite de sa vie. C’est ce que nous étudions au travers de cet outil particulier, mais symptomatique en milieu institutionnel, qu’est l’animal d’accompagnement social.Nous débutons notre travail autour d’une réflexion pratique et théorique d’un projet d’introduction d’un chien éduqué dans un établissement d’hébergement pour personnes âgées dépendantes. Nous y abordons tout d’abord les questions liées à la connaissance et à la compréhension des usagers que les activités de médiation animale mettent en exergue (1ère partie), puis à partir de ce constat, de développer les aspects managériaux qui s’y trouvent liés en leurs propensions à insérer un projet dans un cadre institutionnel et en leurs facultés d’introduire un nouvel espace de réflexion et de construction du sens (2ème partie) - le résumé de l’ensemble de ces éléments constituant le cahier des charges de la médiation animale. / We are researching the implications of animal assisted therapy within a social care facility in an attempt to respond to the legal and managerial controversies surrounding the scheme. Our research is part of a societal trend towards recognizing the citizen rights of dependent elderly people, and in particular their social and cultural rights. We are studying important questions relating to the power of ageing people to make their own decisions about their lives. That is our main aim in researching the use of companion animals, which may be a revealing tool when used in an institutional setting.We will begin our work by discussing the practical and theoretical implications of the plan to introduce a trained dog into a nursing home for dependent elderly people. We will first discuss the issues related to the knowledge and understanding of the users which will be highlighted through animal assisted therapy (1st part). Secondly, we will develop the managerial implications related to the implementation of this idea in an institutional framework and the possibility of introducing a new space for reflection and the construction of meaning (2rd part). These elements will be used to develop specifications for the animal assisted therapy project.

Theoretical concepts: The central topic of my thesis is the life satisfaction of the elderly, although this concept is perceived very subjectively. Moreover, it varies even in one person at different life stages and it depends on various circumstances and events that accompany people on their life journeys. However, experiencing satisfaction always requires the saturation of one's needs, physical ones as well as mental, social and spiritual ones. Most of the times, one is able to provide for their needs, or at least affect them, through their activities and their will, but the older ones grows, the more one becomes dependent on others in this respect. This task is usually taken in part by one's family members who are willing to help and take care of their close relative, but there also arise situations where one has to entrust themselves into the hands of health professionals, especially nurses. The nurses' tasks do not just include staffing surgeries, but it is necessary for them to pay attention to the individual needs of their clients. Importance of both these components of care is entirely equivalent, because treatment success depends largely on the psychological state, defined by the satisfaction of the clients' life needs, and, on the other hand, the measure a patients' well-being is strongly influenced by the state of their health depending on successful treatment. Professional care that their clients receive is often linked to the placement of the elderly in some health institutions; possibly there may be a situation when an elderly person stays in their home and receives care from field medical staff for only a few hours a day. In any case, the objective of such care, through whatever methods it is provided, should be to achieve the highest possible degree of satisfaction of elderly individuals. Objectives of the thesis: To find out about subjective evaluation of life satisfaction of the elderly depending on their age To find out about subjective evaluation of life satisfaction of the elderly depending on their sex To find out about subjective evaluation of life satisfaction of the elderly depending on institution type Hypotheses: H1: Men are more satisfied than women H2: Satisfaction of the elderly decreases as they grow older H3: The most satisfied are the elderly who use the services of ADP Methods: The method of quantitative research was used in the practical part. For this purpose, the reduced SQUALA standardized questionnaire was used. It had been transferred to interview form due to the age of the target group of the elderly. The obtained data was processed with Microsoft Office Excel and some calculations were made with the Statistica programme. Answers from one hundred respondents were obtained as part of the survey; the respondents came from South Bohemia, particularly from the Český Krumlov and České Budějovice regions. Three types of health care institutions were contacted: a home care agency, retirement homes and hospital aftercare wards. Fifteen elderly persons were obtained for cooperation in the home care agency, 39 persons in retirement homes and 46 persons in hospitals. Results: The results of the survey show that satisfaction of the elderly is most affected by the type of health institution used, i.e. by the environment in which they are provided with health care. Definitely the most satisfied are the people who use the services of the home care agency. On the other hand, age or sex did not play a significant role when evaluating life satisfaction. Conclusion: The importance of this thesis may lie mostly in the opportunity to use the acquired knowledge, regarding the satisfaction of the elderly and the factors that influence this satisfaction, to improve the quality of care provided by nurses and other health staff.

In my diploma thesis I deal with the issue of individual planning as an important tool for social integration of seniors after their entering into the residential social services - Retirement Home Třebíč. The issue of population aging and the seniors seeking residential social services becomes an important issue today and it is related to the increasing length of human life. This thesis consists of a theoretical and an empirical part. The theoretical part is divided into eleven chapters and includes the basic issues related to the main research question. In the empirical part of the diploma thesis there is the goal stated, which is to chart a setting of the individual planning process in the Retirement Home Třebíč. A qualitative research method was applied for a data collection and a sub-analysis method was chosen to create groups (clumps). The major research question for this thesis was established: "Does the individual planning in the Retirement Home Třebíč serve for social integration of the service users?" To answer the main research question, five specific research questions were defined: 1. Are the physiological needs of the users being fulfilled? 2. Is the clients' need for security being fulfilled? 3. Are the social needs of clients being fulfilled? 4. Is the need of clients' autonomy being fulfilled, 5. Are clients satisfied with the individual planning? The research work itself was conducted in two phases. A preliminary research was performed in the first phase and only then the research itself followed. The resulting data were structured and presented according to the specific research questions. The research showed that the respondents are satisfied with individual planning in the Retirement Home Třebíč. In order for the social integration of service users to be complete, not only social but also physiological needs, the need for security and autonomy of residents' needs should be fulfilled. Only if a full range of needs is fulfilled completely, one can speak of a functioning social integration. The research also revealed that all respondents have a key worker and know her name. They identically also answered the question whether they have an individual plan of care formed for them. It reflects wishes of the user if the provided services of the home allow that. To answer the main research question "Does the individual planning in the Senior Home Třebíč serve for social integration of the service users?" my answer is yes. One of the important areas that affect the individual planning and service users' satisfaction is a mutual communication between the residents and staff of the facility. Their proactive approach is of great importance in all areas assessed. In the interviews, clients also repeatedly praised the friendly atmosphere in the home. This thesis should expand awareness of an individual planning in a retirement home among students, home workers, especially key employees, but also the general public.

The dissertation is focused on the adaptation process in a certain Retirement home in Strakonice. The old age is the last evolution period of one´s life and the society should do its best to enable the people to spend this time in harmony, with sense of peace and joy. Nowadays, a pensioner is forced to think of the options provided by social services/social care in case that the health status doesn´t allow him to take care of himself sufficiently and independently or is not able to assure such care through his family. Then a long stay service in a retirement home seems to be an appropriate possibility. Joining such facility is usually considered as one of the most difficult situations that a retiree can meet with. It brings various risks as environment change with no knowledge of the area or people; it represents the loss or limitation of one´s autonomy, habits and privacy etc. A pensioner should properly consider this situation with his family, get ready for it and voluntarily decide to join an retirement home. The objective of my dissertation is to analyse the factors that influence the adaptation of retired people in the Retirement Home Rybniční, Strakonice. In the empirical part, there has been used the method of qualitative research and technics of demi structured dialogue for data collection. The research file has been chosen by the method of contingent defined selection. The own survey has been performed on a selected sample of retirees who complied with the given contingent conditions. The research showed that the arrival to the home for the elderly people is subject to poor health and inadequate housing situation, which represents a barrier to the environment for seniors.To answer the main research questions: What factors affect the adaptation process in the Retirement Home Rybniční, Strakonice? I can state, that the factors such as the home, the saturation of the needs, social contacts with family, friends and other users and active leisure more or less influence the seniors. The research results also pointed out the importance of self-sufficiency, which is affected by the health condition on one hand. On the other hand seniors are driven not only by the mission of Retirement Home Rybniční, but also by their own initiative to maintain the greatest possible degree of autonomy and self-sufficiency. The health status and the rate of self-sufficiency have a great impact on the process of adaptation and affect the individual factors of adaptation. This work should highlight the importance of the adaptation process of the seniors in the home for the elderly, which is not possible to underestimate. Furthermore, it should highlight the need for cooperation of the staff with the family, the importance of communication, environment, needs saturation and activities that can help to overcome this tough life step. Findings and conclusions of the thesis will be used as a feedback for the institution, where the research was carried out.

The thesis is focused on quality standards in social services with the view to clarify the ethical dilemmas that occur in providing client care in elderly homes. Firstly, the work focuses on the transformation of social services of the Czech Republic at the turn of the 20th and 21st century, the emergence of Act no. 108/2006 of Social services, from which emerged for social service providers a legal obligation to create and follow standard of quality that are defined further. Subsequently the thesis continues with the ethics of social work and social workers' Code of Ethics, which sets out the values and ethical principles for their work. This is followed by the description of the ethical dilemmas and ethical issues directly determining the target group of clients who use services of homes for the elderly. This group is also described. The last part of the thesis deals with reflection of concrete ethical dilemmas. Provided dilemmas are solved by standards of quality created by the team of workers working in home for the elderly clients, who in 2012 successfully passed inspections of social services.

Given the ageing of the population, it is desirable to develop a concept of a long-term residential care system for the elderly, the integral part of which is to provide activation. Activities and therapies implemented in a retirement home have an irreplaceable role not only in the complex care for seniors but also in the context of community based rehabilitation in old age. The aim of the thesis was to find out what activities and therapies are provided in the retirement homes. The objectives were to find out: 1. What types and forms of activities and therapies are provided in the retirement homes; 2. What terminology is used in connection with providing activation; 3. Whether a concept or model of care is used in the retirement homes; 4. Whether the retirement homes have been awarded the Quality Score in Social Services of the Association of Social Services Providers of the Czech Republic; 5. Who in the retirement home is responsible for coordinating activation; 6. The position and education level of the staff providing activation; 7. Whether there is a sufficient number of activation workers in the retirement homes; 8. Whether the retirement homes have sufficient funds for activation; 9. Whether the retirement homes have a methodology for providing activation; 10. The difficulties related to the provision of activation and therapies in the retirement homes from the point of view of the staff. The objectives set were achieved through a quantitative research strategy. The polling method with the help of a questionnaire of own construction were selected for date collection and the heads of the retirement homes and the staff providing activation were addressed. The mathematical and statistical method was used to evaluate the empirical material. The result of quantitative research based on the deductive method is the description and analysis of activities and therapies in the retirement homes in the Czech Republic. The research has shown a statistically significant dependence between the founder and the provision of a concept or the model of care in the retirement homes. A statistically significant correlation was found between the number of animal-assisted therapies provided in the retirement homes and the certification of facilities by the so-called Quality Score in Social Services. A statistically significant relationship between the seniority of the head of the retirement home and the availability of funding for activation has been demonstrated. There was a statistically significant dependency between the type of the founder and the provision of a concept or the model of care in the retirement homes. A statistically significant correlation between the seniority of the head of the retirement homes and the development of a methodology for providing activation has been demonstrated. The thesis provides a comprehensive view of the issue of activities and therapies implemented in the retirement homes in the Czech Republic. The acquired knowledge will be used as a basis for the preparation of materials and the concept of animal-assisted therapy in the area of care for seniors, on which the author of the thesis would like to participate in the following years in cooperation with non-profit organizations engaged in practicing animal-assisted therapy in the Czech Republic. The results of the thesis will be presented to the Association of Social Service Providers of the Czech Republic, as a professional organization associating providers of social services, in order to use the obtained results in the update and review of the activation documents. The results may be useful for the staff of the retirement homes in the development of the methodology of educational, training and activation activities in the context of community based rehabilitation. The results obtained will be passed on to the workers in social services and social workers through the author's publication and lecture activities as well as in the provision of supervision.