The theoretical part describes the characteristics of dementia and approaches to its management, including the newer strategy for managing dementia in Slovenia. The specifics of institutional care and care for people with dementia with the emphasis on social work and the role of the social worker in care planning and the implementation of social care services are explained. The specifics of care and care for people with dementia in homes for the older people during the covid-19 pandemic are also presented.
The purpose of the research was to determine how people with dementia living in the Lambrecht home in Slovenske Konjice are involved in the planning of their care and how their involvement in care planning has changed during the covid-19 pandemic. I was interested in whom people with dementia trust the most, what decision-making options they have and how their trust and decision-making have changed due to the measures related to this pandemic. I have also found out whether they are aware of their right to advocacy. The focus of the research was on how people with dementia understand the role of a social worker and on his view of the issue under consideration.
I used qualitative research methods. I obtained the data with the help of semi-structured interviews, which I conducted with ten residents of this home with confirmed stage 1 or stage 2 dementia and with four employees of this home. The results of the research showed that people with dementia in this home are involved in the planning of their care from the moment they are admitted to the home and that social workers regularly evaluate and, if necessary, change or adjust the care plan to the new needs they identify with the residents. The interviewees leave most of the decision-making on matters that are important to them to their children. They would like to be in the contact with someone who was the knowledge of advocacy. Their knowledge of the right to make decisions about future treatment is generally very poor. During the covid-19 pandemic, the most difficult measures for them were the restriction of movement and the ban on visits, and their decision-making was significantly curtailed. All the interviewees noticed the increased care and effort of the employees to make it easier for them to stay at home during that time, but with the exception of establishing contact with relatives with the help of information and communication technology, the employees did not implement more innovative approaches to reduce their hardships, as they did in some other Slovenian homes for the older people.
As part of care planning in this home, the social worker should inform people with dementia in an understandable way about their rights to make decisions about their treatment in the future and to advocate. In the event of a repeat of the emergency conditions that prevailed in homes for the older people during the covid-19 pandemic, we should ensure that people with dementia make more decisions about themselves and are less socially excluded.
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