Improving Quality of Life for Older People in Long-Stay Care ...

Table 4.1: Distribution of focus group participantsRegion Total Public Private VoluntaryDublin (1) 15 13 1 1Dublin (2) 7 2 5 –Dublin (3) 7 3 4 –Galway (1) 16 8 7 1Galway (2) 7 4 3 –Cork 11 4 7 –Donegal 4 4 3 1 –Total 67 37 28 24.3.1 Development of Focus Group Interview Schedule82A semistructured interview schedule was developed from an analysis ofthe literature for use in all focus groups. The guide addressed five key areas:dependency measurement, staffing, quality of care, quality of life and futurepolicy. All focus groups were tape recorded with the permission of participantsand transcribed verbatim.4.3.2 Conduct of Focus GroupsCareful attention was given to setting up the environment so that participants couldbe as relaxed as possible. Two members of the research team attended each focusgroup. One acted as facilitator, the other as moderator. The facilitator’s role wasto ask the questions on the interview schedule, clarify issues with the group andexplore the extent to which views expressed by a group member were sharedby all the group. The moderator’s role was to listen to focus group participantperspectives, gather demographic details from participants, take notes and ensurethat the recording equipment was working. Each group was asked questionsin the same order and questions and responses were displayed to aid clarity.4 Participants representing the public sector in Donegal indicated that two nurse managers had beenselected to represent the ten nurse managers in the region.Improving Quality of Life for Older People in Long-Stay Care Settings in Ireland