Življenjski svet starih ljudi v času epidemije COVID-19 oziroma po njej : magistrsko delo

Ropoša, Sanja (avtor), Dragoš, Srečo (mentor)

V magistrskem delu sem analizirala stanje, povezano z epidemijo COVID-19 pri starih ljudeh, ki so ena izmed najranljivejših skupin v povezavi z omenjenim stanjem. Podatke sem zbirala pri dveh skupinah, in sicer pri socialnih delavkah, zaposlenih v domu za stare oziroma v zavodu za dnevno varstvo starih ljudi in pomoč na domu ter pri ljudeh, starih 65 let in več, ki bivajo v instituciji ali v domačem okolju. Omejila sem se na območje Pomurja, čeprav je pri eni sogovornici kraj v Pomurju zgolj občasen dom (kupljen vikend). Njeno stalno prebivališče je v osrednji Sloveniji. Prvo omenjeno skupino, torej zaposlene, sem spraševala o ozaveščenosti oziroma informiranju starih ljudi o novem virusu, zanimalo me je mnenje zaposlenih glede materialnega oziroma finančnega stanja starih ljudi, njihovega socialnega življenja, spraševala sem jih o vplivu izrednih razmer na zdravstveno stanje ljudi, o vplivu epidemije na vsakdanje življenje. Na koncu sem se osredotočila na delovni proces socialnih delavk v času epidemije. Pri drugi skupini, torej pri starih ljudeh, sem se osredotočila na enaka življenjska področja, brez vključitve delovnega procesa. Vzorec je bil neslučajnostni in priročni, opravljena raziskava pa kvalitativna, empirična in eksplorativna. Za zbiranje podatkov sem uporabila delno strukturiran intervju, pri katerem sem imela teme vnaprej določene. Vprašanja v povezavi s posamezno temo sem prilagajala glede na kontekst pogovora, nekatera sem prestrukturirala, nekatere dodala oziroma jih odvzela. Namen je bil neomejevanje sogovornic pri podajanju odgovorov na posamezno temo, ker se mi je zdelo pomembno, da so ljudje povedali vse, kar so mislili in je bilo povezano s posameznim področjem. Kvalitativna metoda oziroma kodiranje je bila metoda, ki sem jo uporabila za analizo zbranih podatkov. Bistvena problematika med epidemijo je osamljenost starih ljudi, ki se je med že prej osamljenimi zgolj poglobila. Težko je bilo predvsem v institucijah, kjer so ljudje čez noč izvedeli, da jih sorodniki več ne bodo mogli obiskovati. V teh okoliščinah se mi zdi bistvenega pomena, da se domači s socialno službo posvetujejo in najdejo ustrezne načine za nadaljnje kontinuirano ohranjanje stikov s starim človekom. Ena izmed dobrih idej za vzdrževanje stikov se mi v okviru institucije zdijo obiski skozi steklo. Gre namreč za kombiniranje posrednih in neposrednih stikov. Posameznika se skozi steklo pogovarjata po telefonu in se imata možnost videti skozi steklo. Pomembno je tudi ohranjanje dnevne domske rutine kljub omejitvam v okviru organiziranja individualnih aktivnosti (recimo individualni pogovori, sprehodi). Osamljenost je tudi težava ljudi iz domačega okolja, zato se mi zdi, da bi bilo treba zaradi pozitivnih odzivov v času epidemije razviti več podobnih projektov, kot je ČvekiFON za vzpostavljanje in ohranjanje medsebojnih stikov. Druga bistvena težava med epidemijo je problematika pri sporazumevanju zaradi uporabe zaščitne opreme, kar je še posebej težavno pri ljudeh z demenco in naglušnih oziroma gluhih ljudeh. Za omilitev tega problema se mi zdi koristna uporaba prosojnih mask zaradi lažjega sledenja besednemu in nebesednemu sporazumevanju, prav tako upoštevanje specifičnosti in uporaba tehnik med sporazumevanjem s to ranljivo skupino. Glede na to, da so bili domovi v določenem epidemiološkem obdobju med najranljivejšimi glede okužb in smrtnosti, se mi zdi, da je na državni ravni v ospredju potreba po jasnejšem načrtu glede obvladovanja okužb v domovih, po zadostni nabavi zaščitne opreme, po večji zaposljivosti, po preureditvi bivalnih pogojev.

• Jezik: Slovenski jezik
• Ključne besede: stari ljudje, COVID-19, dom za stare, domače okolje, socialne delavke, socialno življenje
• Vrsta gradiva: Magistrsko delo/naloga
• Tipologija: 2.09 - Magistrsko delo
• Organizacija: FSD - Fakulteta za socialno delo
• Kraj izida: Ljubljana
• Založnik: [S. Ropoša]
• Leto izida: 2021
• Št. strani: 211 str.
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-133209
• UDK: 364.4-053.9
• COBISS.SI-ID: 89533699
• Datum objave v RUL: 17.11.2021

Sekundarni jezik

• Jezik: Angleški jezik
• Naslov: The lifeworld of the elderly during or after the COVID-19 epidemic

Izvleček

In my master's thesis, I analyzed the impact of COVID-19 on the elderly, who represent one of the most high-risk groups from the said disease. I collected data from two groups, namely from social workers employed in retirement homes, daycare centers for the elderly, and elderly home care; as well as from people aged 65 or more living in an institution or in their home environment. The data collection was limited to the Pomurje region. One of the correspondents only lives in Pomurje occasionally (at her weekend-house) – her permanent residence is in Central Slovenia. I asked the first group of people, i.e. social workers, about raising awareness and spreading knowledge about the novel virus among the elderly; about their opinions on the material or financial status of the elderly and their social life; about the impact of emergencies on people's health; and about the impact of the epidemic on everyday life. Ultimately, I focused on the workflow of social workers during the epidemic. With the second group of people, i.e. the elderly, I focused on the same aspects of life excluding workflow. The sample was non-random and convenient, and the conducted research qualitative, empirical, and exploratory. In terms of data collection, I made use of a semi-structured interview with preselected interview topics. During the interviews, the questions relating to individual topics were adjusted based on the context; some questions were restructured while others were eliminated altogether. The reason behind this was that I did not want to limit the correspondents in answering questions on individual topics. Namely, I believed that it was important for people to tell everything that was on their mind and related to each of the topics. To analyze the collected data, I used qualitative coding. The main epidemic-related challenge among the elderly is loneliness, which has only become more prominent among those who had been lonely before. It is especially notable in institutions, where people learned overnight that their relatives would no longer be able to visit them. In such circumstances, I believe it is crucial for family members to consult social workers and find suitable means of maintaining contact with the elderly. I believe one exemplary method for maintaining contact within institutions are visits where the elderly get to see their loved ones through a glass screen. It is also important to maintain a daily routine within retirement homes while keeping in mind the restrictions on individual organized activities (e.g. one-on-one discussions and walks). Loneliness is also a problem for people living in their home environments. Based on positive feedback during the epidemic, I believe more projects like ČvekiFON should be developed to promote interpersonal contact and interaction. Another major epidemic-related challenge is communication through personal protective equipment, which is especially a problem among people suffering from dementia and those who are hard of hearing. One way to mitigate this issue is to use transparent face masks, which make it easier to follow both verbal and non-verbal communication. Considering the specific needs of these vulnerable groups and using proper communication techniques is also helpful. For a period of time during the epidemic, retirement homes were one of the hotspots in terms of the number of infections and reported deaths; therefore, I believe there is a strong need for developing a clear state-wide plan aimed at managing infections in retirement homes, procuring sufficient personal protective equipment, increasing the number of employees, and optimizing the living conditions.

• Ključne besede: elderly, COVID-19, retirement home, home environment, social workers, social life