There's No Place Like Home: Home-Like Environments in Aged Care Facilities

What is this article about?

When we talk about to the resident's rights in healthcare, we are usually referring to the rights, duties and obligations exercised in a relationship between resident/nurse, resident/doctor and/or resident/care provider. To me, this is where dilemmas arise: from the clash between the resident's rights to choice, decision-making and risk-taking, versus the nurses'/doctors'/providers' obligations to provide safe services, albeit heavily regulated, within a home-like environment. If you’re like me, and you hear the term 'home-like environment' again, you’ll go crazy! This is because the environment is not at all like their home used to be. The 'home' we provide is full of rules and regulations. In fact, when a resident enters residential care, they often begin a slow but steady downhill journey where free will and decision-making are slowly stripped away until the person becomes quite dependent.