Purpose. To provide an overview of factors influencing the sense of home of older adults residing in the nursing home. Methods. A systematic review was conducted. Inclusion criteria were (1) original and peer-reviewed research, (2) qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods research, (3) research about nursing home residents (or similar type of housing), and (4) research on the sense of home, meaning of home, at-homeness, or homelikeness. Results. Seventeen mainly qualitative articles were included. The sense of home of nursing home residents is influenced by 15 factors, divided into three themes: (1) psychological factors (sense of acknowledgement, preservation of one's habits and values, autonomy and control, and coping); (2) social factors (interaction and relationship with staff, residents, family and friends, and pets) and activities; and (3) the built environment (private space and (quasi-)public space, personal belongings, technology, look and feel, and the outdoors and location). Conclusions. The sense of home is influenced by numerous factors related to the psychology of the residents and the social and built environmental contexts. Further research is needed to determine if and how the identified factors are interrelated, if perspectives of various stakeholders involved differ, and how the factors can be improved in practice.
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Internationale studenten zijn van belang voor hogeronderwijsinstellingen, internationale klaslokalen en de Nederlandse economie. Maar internationale studenten worden vaak geconfronteerd met diverse praktische moeilijkheden en het wennen aan een nieuwe omgeving. Ook blijkt uit de jaarlijkse Studentenwelzijnsmonitor van Inholland dat internationale studenten gemiddeld een lager gevoel van sense of belonging hebben dan Nederlandse studenten. Voor studenten is sense of belonging belangrijk omdat het positief verband houdt met studiesucces, studievoortgang en negatief verband houdt met studieuitval. Sense of belonging gaat over het diepgaande emotionele gevoel van verbondenheid, thuis voelen en jezelf kunnen zijn. Dit zijn universele basisbehoeften van de mens die bij vervulling een positief effect hebben op iemands mentale en fysieke welzijn. Uit intern onderzoek blijkt dat de sense of belonging onder de internationale studenten laag is en correleert met het welzijn en de betrokkenheid van de studenten. International Office van Inholland heeft behoefte aan meer informatie over waarom de sense of belonging van de internationale studenten laag is en wat zij eraan kunnen doen om dit te verbeteren. In deze studie is gekeken naar de behoeften, ervaringen en opbrengsten die hebben bijgedragen aan de sense of belonging van internationale studenten en wat Inholland hierin kan betekenen. Er zijn 21 kwalitatieve interviews gehouden met internationale studenten van verschillende opleidingen en Inholland-locaties. Er is gebruik gemaakt van een semigestructureerde interviewguide.
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Background The sense of home of nursing home residents is a multifactorial phenomenon which is important for the quality of living. This purpose of this study is to investigate the factors influencing the sense of home of older adults residing in the nursing home from the perspective of residents, relatives and care professionals. Methods A total of 78 participants (n = 24 residents, n = 18 relatives and n = 26 care professionals) from 4 nursing homes in the Netherlands engaged in a qualitative study, in which photography was as a supportive tool for subsequent interviews and focus groups. The data were analyzed based on open ended coding, axial coding and selective coding. Results The sense of home of nursing home residents is influenced by a number of jointly identified factors, including the building and interior design; eating and drinking; autonomy and control; involvement of relatives; engagement with others and activities; quality of care are shared themes. Residents and relatives stressed the importance of having a connection with nature and the outdoors, as well as coping strategies. Relatives and care professionals emphasized the role the organization of facilitation of care played, as well as making residents feel like they still matter. Conclusions The sense of home of nursing home residents is influenced by a multitude of factors related to the psychology of the residents, and the social and built environmental contexts. A holistic understanding of which factors influence the sense of home of residents can lead to strategies to optimize this sense of home. This study also indicated that the nursing home has a dual nature as a place of residence and a place where people are supported through numerous care strategies.
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Personal possessions of nursing home residents can contribute to their sense of home. This study investigated which of the personal belongings were considered most important, and if these items indeed contributed to a sense of home. A qualitative research was conducted with 27 nursing home residents. Photographs, paintings, and pieces of furniture are objects with sentimental value. The television set is valued for its practical function. Residents of larger rooms have more flexibility in bringing along personal items, including pieces of furniture. The results of this study can be used for the design of nursing homes or for making informed choices during the process of institutionalization.
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Purpose For most people, nursing homes are a place they reside for the rest of their lives. Therefore, a nursing home, apart from providing good care, has to provide for a sense of home (1). Mostly professionals are responsible for this sense of home. The aim of this study was to explore how professionals (both care professionals, managers, suppliers of nursing home equipment and architects experience 'sense of home' in a nursing home. Method Over 70 persons (±20-65 years old, 2/3 women) having varying professional involvement in nursing homes participated. The Lego serious play method was used to engage participants in a personal and authentic manner (2). After building their model of 'sense of home', participants recorded their main issues on a sticky note. The models represented the personal stories of the participants, who shared the meaning of their model. Results & Discussion The findings revealed that a range of themes were considered important by the participants (table 1). The main themes involved privacy, space, mobility and freedom, for instance, to open doors, social engagement, being recognised as the person used to before, and nature or the presence of plants and animals. These results are compared with results of a recently performed literature review and photography supported research in residents, family and staff in four nursing homes (3).
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The quality of the built environment can impact the quality of life and the sense of home of nursing home residents. This study investigated (1) which factors in the physical and social environment correlate with the sense of home of the residents and (2) which environmental factors are most meaningful. Twelve participants engaged in a qualitative study, in which photography was as a supportive tool for subsequent interviews. The data were analysed based on the six phases by Braun and Clarke. The four themes identified are (1) the physical view; (2) mobility and accessibility; (3) space, place, and personal belongings; and (4) the social environment and activities. A holistic understanding of which features of the built environment are appreciated by the residents can lead to the design and retrofitting of nursing homes that are more in line with personal wishes.
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The nursing home is often a final stage in the living career of older persons, but the question remains whether it is a true home or merely a place where care is provided for the residents. This study investigates the sense of home and its constituent factors among both permanent and temporary residents of nursing homes in The Netherlands. A qualitative research design was chosen for the study, which consisted of in-depth interviews using a topic list that was developed through literature review and a focus group session. Autonomy and safety and security are the basic aspects for a sense of home. These aspects refer to the relationships and actions of nursing home residents and the environment in which people live. The research findings show that developing a sense of home encompasses much more than just being surrounded by personal belongings and having a private room with certain facilities. Subjective components of relationships and (inter)actions are as important as the physical component of living and housing. Only when a right balance is achieved between all factors, a true sense of home, albeit away from the familiar home someone spent most of his/her life, can be developed. Understanding these perspectives and needs can contribute to a better design and retrofitting process of future nursing homes.
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This chapter revisits the concept of internationalisation at home in light of the COVID pandemic and also of experiences and ongoing discourses on internationalisation. These include how internationalisation at home relates to diversity, inclusion and decolonisation of curricula. It discusses how the COVID pandemic has led to increased attention to internationalisation at home but also that confusion about terminology and the desire for physical mobility to be available to students may lead us to return to pre-COVID practices, in which internationalisation is mainly understood as mobility for a small minority of students and internationalisation of the home curriculum is a poor second best. A component of this chapter is how Virtual Exchange and Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) have moved into the spotlight during the pandemic but were already in focus areas well before. This will be illustrated by some recent developments in internationalisation at home, mainly from non-Anglophone, European and particularly Dutch perspectives.
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The sense of safety and security of older people is a widely acknowledged action domain for policy and practice in age-friendly cities. Despite an extensive body of knowledge on the matter, the theory is fragmented, and a classification is lacking. Therefore, this study investigated how older people experience the sense of safety and security in an age-friendly city. A total of four focus group sessions were organised in The Hague comprising 38 older people. Based on the outcomes of the sessions, the sense of safety and security was classified into two main domains: a sense of safety and security impacted by intentional acts and negligence (for instance, burglary and violence), and a sense of safety and security impacted by non-intentional acts (for instance, incidents, making mistakes online). Both domains manifest into three separate contexts, namely the home environment, the outdoor environment and traffic and the digital environment. In the discussions with older people on these derived domains, ideas for potential improvements and priorities were also explored, which included access to information on what older people can do themselves to improve their sense of safety and security, the enforcement of rules, and continuous efforts to develop digital skills to improve safety online. Original article at MDPI; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19073960
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The transition from home to a nursing home can be stressful and traumatic for both older persons and informal caregivers and is often associated with negative outcomes. Additionally, transitional care interventions often lack a comprehensive approach, possibly leading to fragmented care. To avoid this fragmentation and to optimize transitional care, a comprehensive and theory-based model is fundamental. It should include the needs of both older persons and informal caregivers. Therefore, this study, conducted within the European TRANS-SENIOR research consortium, proposes a model to optimize the transition from home to a nursing home, based on the experiences of older persons and informal caregivers. These experiences were captured by conducting a literature review with relevant literature retrieved from the databases CINAHL and PubMed. Studies were included if older persons and/or informal caregivers identified the experiences, needs, barriers, or facilitators during the transition from home to a nursing home. Subsequently, the data extracted from the included studies were mapped to the different stages of transition (pre-transition, mid-transition, and post-transition), creating the TRANSCITmodel. Finally, results were discussed with an expert panel, leading to a final proposed TRANSCIT model. The TRANSCIT model identified that older people and informal caregivers expressed an overall need for partnership during the transition from home to a nursing home. Moreover, it identified 4 key components throughout the transition trajectory (ie, pre-, mid-, and post-transition): (1) support, (2) communication, (3) information, and (4) time. The TRANSCIT model could advise policy makers, practitioners, and researchers on the development and evaluation of (future) transitional care interventions. It can be a guideline reckoning the needs of older people and their informal caregivers, emphasizing the need for a partnership, consequently reducing fragmentation in transitional care and optimizing the transition from home to a nursing home.
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