'You need them to know your ways': service users' views about valued dimensions of home care.
Dominant approaches to evaluating supportive home care tend to be 'top-down,' undertaken from the vantage points of funding bodies and professionals, rather than from the perspectives of service users. A longitudinal, qualitative study of women receiving home care in Ontario, Canada explored their accounts of what constitutes good and responsive care. Participants identified four dimensions of care that they particularly valued: Minimized exposure, being known, staying in charge, and being able to speak. The implications of their perspectives for home care practice, evaluation and organization are discussed.
Aronson
Jane
J
School of Social Work, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. aronsonj@mcmaster.ca
D005260:Female; D006302:Health Services Research; D006699:Home Care Services / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D009864:Ontario; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations; D011787:Quality of Health Care