2016_Professionals%27%20perspectives%20towards%20health%20promotion%20in%20residential%20aged%20care.pdf (277.72 kB)
Professionals’ perspectives towards health promotion in residential aged care: an explorative study in Austria
journal contribution
posted on 2023-06-21, 06:01 authored by Benjamin MarentBenjamin Marent, Christina Wieczorek, Karl KrajicFollowing the trend in most developed countries, in Austria the oldest old are the fastest growing population group. Among this group, there is a high prevalence of multimorbidity, functional impairment, dementia and psychiatric conditions. While health promotion (HP) has been considered relevant in coping with the challenges of an aging population, it has so far been viewed as a foreign concept in relation to the oldest old, especially those living in residential aged care (RAC) facilities. Although there is an acknowledgement that HP should be integrated into routine nursing, there has been little re- search on how professionals working with RAC interpret and implement HP. In this study, 13 semi- structured interviews were carried out with professionals from four major Austrian RAC providers. The data were analysed using thematic analysis. The findings show that, typically, professionals understand HP as a concept that is oriented towards maintaining potentials and resources, thereby promoting self-determination, autonomy and social integration, including frail and functionally impaired elderly residents. However, data analysis also revealed a gap between the conceptual understanding and positive attitudes towards HP and its implementation in practice. Implementation of HP seems to occur in isolated cases, related to specific health issues. It seems that more complex HP approaches, especially the ‘settings approach’, are hardly practiced. To implement more comprehensive and systematic HP in Austrian RAC, support from external HP agencies as well as changes in financial incentives are needed.
History
Publication status
- Published
File Version
- Accepted version
Journal
Health Promotion InternationalISSN
0957-4824Publisher
Oxford University PressExternal DOI
Issue
2Volume
33Page range
268-278Department affiliated with
- Management Publications
Full text available
- Yes
Peer reviewed?
- Yes
Legacy Posted Date
2020-01-28First Open Access (FOA) Date
2020-01-28First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date
2020-01-28Usage metrics
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