Maintenance of Professional Boundaries and Family Involvement in Residential Aged Care

Abstract

The importance of family’s involvement in care planning has been stressed to cater individualized, person-centered care in residential aged care. However, in reality, there are numerous structural obstacles and barriers that limit opportunities for their involvement. The aim of this article is to explore what they are. The findings based on the 12 focus groups, six groups of care professionals and six groups of family/relatives, reveal that the narrow pathway of communication between staff and families, which is hierarchically structured, one-directional, and clinically driven, enables the former to maintain and control professional boundaries between formal and informal care-giving. Such communication style delimits an opportunity for families to engage in quality discussion about care planning for their loved ones with care staff. Communication within residential aged care facilities embodies complex dynamics of care expectations and responsibilities held by care staff and families.

Identifying and Responding to Delirium in Acute Stroke: Clinical Team Members’ Understandings

“…All such potential contributions point to the importance for the clinical team of involving family members and/or caregivers in the therapeutic process from an early stage, potentially all the more so in circumstances that are otherwise marked by uncertainty and in which the gathering of available information about the stroke survivor is a priority. Although professional boundaries often inhibit meaningful involvement of family members in the delivery of care (Omori et al, 2019), the informal but practical knowledge that family members bring can usefully inform the care that will be of most immediate benefit to a loved one (James et al, 2009). At the same time, involvement of family members from an early stage will allow them to feel less "in the dark" about what has happened to a loved one who has become less familiar and potentially absent from them (Day & Higgins, 2015, p. 1712.…”

A critical exploration of professional jurisdictions and role boundaries in inter-professional end-of-life care in the community

“…Renegotiation of professional boundaries may be necessary in order to achieve person-centred care (Omori et al, 2019), which is a strategic ambition for end-life-care (National Palliative andEnd of Life Care Partnership, 2015, NCPC, 2015) Communication and information sharing across boundaries Communication and information sharing across professional boundaries are key to interprofessional working, yet are consistently highlighted as problematic areas of practice (Kimble et al, 2010). Indeed, poor coordination between primary and secondary care providers has been identified as a major challenge to the delivery of high quality end-of-life care in the community (Department of Health, 2008).…”

How Do Relatives Experience Advanced Home Care? A Qualitative Study

“…The act of structuring more distanced interaction practices with the caregivers is seen as another important aspect of the learning process aimed at restoring privacy. 17 However, this is something that the practice has shown to occur often only after the occurrence of a negative experience. Consequently, it involves the reduction of communication to a minimum and, theme wise, away from the personal topics.…”