[The right of the client in geriatric psychiatry to a personal, individual world view. How can we, as caregivers, learn to share this?].
"Validation" after Naomi Feil is the name of a method which is used and recognized the world over as an appreciative way of dealing with the highly aged. Validation is based on universally valid humanist principles. A person is viewed as an individual being having a good reason for his current behavior. This is true for "still oriented" as well as for "non-oriented" persons. It is necessary to recognize and categorize the different behavioral patterns in the various phases of disorientation. Here we speak of the physical and psychological characteristics of the four phases of disorientation. The target group is persons who are just still oriented, but deny their current situation and thus react peculiaryly. The next group is the time and place disoriented persons. Subsequently the group of persons who can express themselves solely by nonverbal means, i.e. repetitive movements, follows. The last group is motionless persons who simply vegetate. In addition, there are suitable verbal and nonverbal techniques that can be used in a most sensible and appreciative way of dealing with these highly aged. The aged persons are not corrected and not oriented according to reality, but are escorted in their world. We call this: "walking in the shoes of the other person". It is necessary to take emotions seriously and to share them with others. We do not take position, we do not judge and we also do not offer hasty solutions. We are honest and do not use well-meant lies. The goal of applying validation is on the one hand the relief and improvement of the work situation of family and the people taking care of these aged persons, and on the other hand a noticeable and measurable increase of these highly aged persons welfare and quality of life.
Sramek
Gunvor
G
Validation Training Institute, Wien/Osterreich.
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000145:classification / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D003142:Communication; D003221:Confusion / Q000145:classification / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D006808:Humanism; D006801:Humans; D007206:Individuality; D008297:Male; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D011936:Reality Testing; D012938:Social Perception; D012944:Social Support