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Chapter 5 Findings
The shepherd’s pie and the rashers and eggs are served every
Wednesday and the lady who gets the ham and the lady who gets
the salad get that every day….
It is now 7pmand a snack is being served. Residents are offered a
choice of tea or milk, bread, biscuits, bananas, brack or yoghurts
and one HCA asks a resident ‘would you like a ham sandwich?’”
(Obs – Day 1)
Staff participants talked about the lack of choices available to residents,
but yet they didn’t recognise what they could do to change that and they
still determined the routine:
“There are certain residents who could be asked a lot more what they
think or what they want to do and when they want to do it, like when
they want to get up or even if they want to get up or what they like to
eat or what they want to wear or if they would like to get their hair
done or....some of them never go outside at all.”
(S03)
“I don’t think they have an awful lot of choices, if you want me to be
completely honest. I don’t think they are actually asked. I like to get
them up if at all possible.”
(S12)
The resident participants didn’t have a lot to say about their choices but
offered that those who can choose do, but these are usually minor choices
like whether or not to get up. Others just go along with the routine of the
day:
“Sometimes if I’m in bad form I’m mightn’t get up or get out.”
(R02) (Barthel 16)
“I don’t make any decisions from day to day. I just let the day come
and go because of my disability.”
(R06) (Barthel 4)
Some staff participants did talk about the choices they offer residents but these
were mainly in relation to physical care. This was also observed:
“You’d always question them, always suggest something and if
they don’t want to do it, even if you feel they would benefit from it,
you might suggest it again or encourage it in a different way. But I