| Abstract [eng] |
Purpose of the research. The announcement of the global Covid-19 pandemic inevitably affected the field of social work with elderly people and aroused the questions about the possibilities of finding the services which could help to maintain the quality of life of the elderly at nursing homes during Covid-19 pandemic, prevent the spread of virus, avoid possible complications and critical ilnesses, restore the lost „social connections“. Taking into account the changes in the institutional care system due to Covid-19 pandemic, the role and importance of a social worker has increased and his main roles of the advocate, consultant, informant, advisor, mediator, and coordinator gained new features. However, the ambiguity of responsibilities caused the increase of a tension between social workers, working at nursing homes for the elderly. Research methodology. Analisis of scientific literature, analysis of legal acts and documents, qualitative research (interview), strategy of qualitative content analysis. Conclusions of the research. The research reveals that under the conditions of „pandemic management “, social workers routine have noticeably changed. Despite the fact that most social workers have been rewarded for working at tough circumstances, there still is tension and lack of motivation among them. It is important to note that difficult daily working conditions led to a shift in the role of the social worker at nursing homes for the elderly. In addition to the usual social workers‘ roles, new ones have emerged, such as executor, caregiver, liaison officer, isolator, change indicator and other important and substantial roles. Interviews with the managers of nursing homes for the elderly revealed that bureaucratic management procedures in these institutions had been affected by the pandemic, and that "top-down" instructions had to be incorporated abruptly from the first day of quarantine announcement. The interviews with clients‘ relatives highlighted the problem of severe lack of connection and closeness which clients experienced at nursing homes during pandemic. This distingushed the new role of the social worker, which can be called the role of a “catalyst” for social relations. The research indicated that three groups of interview participants (nursing home managers, social workers and clients‘ relatives) evaluates the shift in social workers role at nursing home during global pandemic differently. Nursing home managers highlights a positive attitude toward social workers role during Covid-19 pandemic, values the skills and competencies acquired by social workers. Social workers express frustration due to the need of rapid adaptation to the new circumstances, increased workload, constant stress. The relatives of the clients of nursing homes note that social work is a very important part of social reality, social worker helps in maintaining warm relationships and developing a sense of humanity. The study highlights the importance of the ethical element in assessing the role of the social worker. It is clear that due to Covid pandemic the role of social workers at nursing home for the elderly has changed. The interviews‘ with social workers data revealed that the role of the social worker has become more complex, significant, and meaningful, with an even greater moral emphasis. The shift in the role of social workers at nursing homes for the elderly in the conditions of a pandemic has opened up the opportunities for the application of creative work methods and tools and discipline planning, which can be used by trained social workers to perform work functions more efficiently. Moreover, according to the interview with nursing home managers and clients‘ relatives, in the face of Covid pandemic, workers acquired new professional skills, attributes and competencies. |
