Pastoral Relationship with People with Intellectual ... - Theses

232Does it matter whether Madge had a visitor or not? Private space shouldbe private space.And I reflect on how I value my home as my sanctuary. What if someone,apart from one of my family, should enter my sanctuary unannounced. Howwould I feel? Certainly affronted, and perhaps scared, because it may well be athief seeking to transgress my sanctuary and that which it contains.And while it is well-intentioned and only ‘doing her job,’ the carer’sunannounced entry into Madge’s room feels like theft to me, for something ofMadge’s claim to privacy has been stolen. 580 Not only has the peace andquietness of her room been transgressed, but her childhood memories, still richlyand fondly remembered despite the onset of dementia, have been stolen from thisquiet pastoral moment by the mundane need to return laundry.It is in private spaces that Madge and all the others who live in thisinstitution can claim a place where they can quietly remember, talk with others orto themselves, listen to music, sing, watch television, look out their window intothe garden, or anything else they choose to do. It is in such private moments thata person can reaffirm or grow an identity that is not specifically shaped byinstitutional regimen or requirements. If staff feel so beholden to theirinstitutionally-derived responsibilities that they have to interrupt such momentsthen something of an accommodated person’s identity is supplanted by thesupposed higher priority of the business of being an institution. The freedomafforded by a respect for privacy is suppressed by the necessary continuance ofinstitutional routine.What can I do to uphold Madge’s identity fostered in the privacy of herroom? Perhaps I should tell the ward assistant to come back later, advocating tothe institution for the upholding of Madge’s identity. But it shouldn’t benecessary. We all need privacy. Whether it’s the backyard shed, the weekendshack, our study, or that sunset down at the beach, we accept it is as our580 The fundamental right to privacy and the incapacity of institutions to ensure such a right isnoted in Wolfensberger, Normalization, e.g. 66, 73.The difficulty of contractually ensuring quality of life issues, such as privacy, in a serviceuser environment, is highlighted in,Cambridge, Paul. "Becoming Contractual: The Development of Contract and Social CareMarkets in England." In Deinstitutionalization and People with Intellectual Disabilities: Inand out of Institutions, edited by Kelly Johnson and Rannveig Traustadottir, 240-50. (Londonand Philadelphia: Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2006), 247-48.Tressider, Virginia. "Cooper's Ailment." Disparity 3, no. 1 (2005): 4-7.