高齢者グループリビングにおける居住者間関係と生活の質

Abstract

PURPOSE OF THIS RESEARCH Elderly Group Living (EDL) is a practice of new habitation style that elderly people share a house to cooperate with each other in order to make up for physical inability. Because of interaction between residents, EDLs have possibilities to improve the level of elder's quality of life. However, there are following questions; which level should they accept about resident's mental and physical depression and could they combine support accepting and resident's independence? Therefore, we focused attention on “Group House SAKURA”. It is the EGL which has the longest history in Japan. Through this practice, this paper aims to clarify substance of management in this house by resident's basic attribute, residency lengths, resident's age change and manager's response of this, and then it aims to consider interrelationship between residents and between a resident and the manager.SUMMARY OF THE TARGETED HOUSE AND MATERIAL TO BE OBJECTS TO ANALYZED The founder and manager builds “Group House SAKURA” at an opportunity of own housing rehabilitation in 1990. She lives next door in same building. It has 6 rooms with a sink and a toilet, and it has a kitchen, a dining room, a bathroom, and a laundry room in common. The practice of new habitation attracted much interest from the public, and more than one published material released about this house. The founder and manager wrote one of them. We used them as objects to analyze, and excerpted description. In addition, we conducted hearing surveys to grasp recent situation. Especially at interaction to forge relationship, we did qualitative research using Grounded Theory Approach (Saiki-Craig hill version). CONCLUSIONS (1) Realization of long-term and stable habitation Total number of residents was 14. Residency lengths were the longest in 18 years, and averaged 8.5 years. The resident could stay living with onset of dementia. In addition to successful relationship, intercommunion after move, conduct a funeral service, and existence of common grave provided a perspective on life course to residents and environment to make them aspire for long-term habitation. (2) Situational responses in inhabited environmental improvement In response to changes in social settings and increasing age of residents, the manager created an environment not only some hardware like renovation their house but also some software. At the beginning, the residents worked together and assumed a role such as setting the table for supper and cleaning common spaces. However with resident's aging, they used Home-visit service by Long-Term Care Insurance Act. The manager launched a company and started Outpatient rehabilitation service. For preparing meals, She made a new relatively-young resident take a role for onerous act. (3) Relationship between residents based on mutual understanding, and quality of life to be gained from it From the situation that residents lived in an inner circle on a daily basis, though they had argument or bickering, they boosted mutual understanding and a sense of tension and competition. It brought about some effects that they had got feelings of self-esteem and acceptableness, fun in the life of not being alone, mutual aid, intellectual development, regulation for their, and health maintenance. (4) Development of a trust relationship by respecting opinions of the residents From the situation that the manager interfaced with balance of payments and assured sustainability, she helped / suggested / encouraged intercommunion / adjusted / no involving. In response to these action, the residents inclined / declined and they indicated their feelings like contentment / discontentment. The manager kept respecting their opinions. It leaded that she developed a trust relationship with residents.