Tekijät

• Ikola, Rinna-Marika (University of Vaasa)

Asiasanat

care of the disabled, care of the elderly, decision making, development, health services, home help, local government, local government officers, local government services, management, social services

Sisällön kuvaus

This survey is part of the social and health services research in the Finnish Local Government 2004 research programme. The research subjects were administration, service provision, and development policies of home help and municipal services for the elderly and the disabled. The respondents were local government officers responsible for home help services and services for the elderly and the disabled in research municipalities. Social services for the elderly and the disabled have also been researched in 1997 and 2000.

First, the service provision of municipal services for the elderly and the disabled was charted. Questions covered how many clients there were within home help and social services for the elderly and the disabled at the end of 2001, whether there were queues for treatment, and which bodies provided the different home help services and services for the elderly and the disabled. Views on satisfaction with the services, competitive tendering, using outsourced services, and whether the respondents' municipalities sold the services for the elderly and the disabled to outside bodies were surveyed. Opinions on the changes in the services for the elderly and the disabled after the year 2000 were queried. The respondents were also asked to evaluate the present state of the services, and whether special needs clients had been taken into account in training personnel and planning and maintaining the service facilities for the elderly and the disabled, as well as for home help.

In relation to management and decision-making, the respondents were asked which elected body was in charge of services for the elderly and the disabled and home help in their municipalities. Views on the significance of that elected body and the impact of different bodies on the municipal services for the elderly and the disabled were also probed. The respondents were asked how important various duties and responsibilities were in their position as the person in charge of services for the elderly and the disabled, and whether they had enough power in deciding on central matters regarding the services.

Views on the use of client surveys and development policies for the future were explored. The respondents were also asked whether there were any ongoing reforms or experiments related to home help or services for the elderly and the disabled in their municipalities. Finally, the respondents were asked to name two central challenges or problems in developing services for the elderly and the disabled and home help.

Background variables included the respondent's gender, age, job title, work experience, and basic education.