Individual care and personal space in assisted living in Sweden.
This article presents a qualitative research project, which explores the relationship between individual care and personal space in assisted living in Sweden. The results were generated from 15-months of observational fieldwork and 22 individual interviews with staff members and ten residents. The research revealed two spatial levels significant to individual care practice: the higher level of architectural spatial configuration and the lower level of spatial micro-conditions. Inflexibility at the first level had to be compensated for by staff strategies at the second. Advantageous conditions at both levels offer a dynamic architectural situation to the staff, in which individual care may arise and thrive.
Linköping University,ISV,National Institute for the Study of Ageing and Later life (NISAL), 601 74Linköping University,Sweden. catno@isv.liu.se
Catharina
C
Nord
D000368:Aged; D040561:Assisted Living Facilities; D005160:Facility Design and Construction; D006272:Health Facility Environment; D006299:Health Services for the Aged; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D010362:Patients' Rooms; D010550:Personal Space; D036301:Qualitative Research; D013548:Sweden