What’s the daily routine like for older people in residential aged care facilities?
To find out, we spent 312 hours observing 39 residents at six Australian aged care facilities to learn how and where they spend their time across the day. We wanted to know how socially engaged residents actually were and how this could affect their wellbeing.
Our study, published in the journal PLOS One, highlights some long-standing issues in aged care but also provides promise.
But there’s more we can do to create opportunities for socialising.
Transitioning from life at home to life in aged care can be challenging, often linked with loss of independence, loss of identity, and loss of control.
Many also associate moving into aged care with a decline in their social lives and overall physical health.
So it’s no surprise people living in aged care homes suffer from generally low levels of wellbeing.
Previous research has found residents hardly attend activities in their facility. The conversations they do have are often with care staff – these are very rare, short, and mainly about their physical care.
However, previous studies often fail to capture critical aspects of how and where socialisation occurs in aged care.
That’s why we decided to take a closer look at how aged care residents spend their time.
During the 312 hours we spent observing 39 residents, we found a day in the life of a resident looks something like this:
We found social interactions peak at breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Across the day, residents:
Overall, residents spent more than half their time being socially and physically active.
Over a third of their time was spent with another resident. Spending time with other residents was most likely to be associated with a higher quality of life.
Based on our research, here are three things aged care providers and Governments can do to improve older Australians’ wellbeing:
1. Improve staffing
Staff shortages and time pressures are key reasons why residents spend little time with staff.
Including more activities chosen and assisted by residents in aged care facilities could help create new social opportunities between residents and strengthen existing ones.
2. Tailor Montessori programs to the aged care environment
Montessori programs create a collaborative approach filled with self-directed activities with hands-on learning and play. Activities include things like sorting and recognising objects, completing puzzles, and practising opening locks.
Montessori programs in small groups or led by family members would suit the smaller staff-to-resident ratios in many aged care centres. They would also help residents (including those with dementia) regain some independence, feel less bored or isolated and have a sense of purpose.
3. Change the physical environment and offer more afternoon activities
Changing the physical environment to accommodate for more social spaces would go a long way to help.
Increasing the number of activities in the afternoon would mean residents have more opportunities to socialise with each other, especially those who are busy with personal care routines in the mornings.
After media reports and an Aged Care Royal Commission highlighted the failings of Australia’s aged care system, it’s time to think differently about aged care.
Our study reveals residents can and do socialise, and that it can significantly improve people’s quality of life.
We must now find ways to change aged care environments and practices to create more social opportunities.
Joyce Siette, Research Fellow, Western Sydney University and Laura Dodds, Research assistant, Macquarie University.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
