Work-related change in residential elderly care

Trust, space and connectedness

Bibliographic Data

ID9888605
AuthorsWieke E Van Der Borg (0000-0002-6677-9753, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, the Netherlands,, corresponding author), Petra Verdonk (0000-0003-0464-8210, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, the Netherlands,, corresponding author), Linda Dauwerse (HAN University of Applied Sciences; Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, the Netherlands, corresponding author), Tineke Abma (0000-0002-8902-322X, Amsterdam UMC Location Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, corresponding author), Tineke A Abma (VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, the Netherlands,)
Year2017
Volume70
Issue7
Pages805-835
Publication date2017-07-01
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueHuman Relations (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0018-7267 • E-ISSN: 1741-282X
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/0018726716684199
PMID28626242
OpenAlexW2587258278
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited66

Increasing care needs and a declining workforce put pressure on the quality and continuity of long-term elderly care. The need to attract and retain a solid workforce is increasingly acknowledged. This study reports about a change initiative that aimed to improve the quality of care and working life in residential elderly care. The research focus is on understanding the process of workforce change and development, by retrospectively exploring the experiences of care professionals. A responsive evaluation was conducted at a nursing home department in the Netherlands one year after participating in the change program. Data were gathered by participant observations, interviews and a focus and dialogue group. A thematic analysis was conducted. Care professionals reported changes in workplace climate and interpersonal interactions. We identified trust, space and connectedness as important concepts to understand perceived change. Findings suggest that the interplay between trust and space fostered interpersonal connectedness. Connectedness improved the quality of relationships, contributing to the well-being of the workforce. We consider the nature and contradictions within the process of change, and discuss how gained insights help to improve quality of working life in residential elderly care and how this may reflect in the quality of care provision

Business · Focus group · Interpersonal communication · Job satisfaction · Political science · Public relations · Qualitative research · Quality (philosophy · Quality of working life · Social connectedness · Sociology · Space (punctuation) · Thematic analysis · Workforce · Geriatric Care and Nursing Homes · Health disparities and outcomes · Marketing · Medicine · Migration, Aging, and Tourism Studies · Nursing · Psychology · Social Psychology

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