The Organisation of Care for Older People in Rural Communities: Two Case Studies from Slovenia
Vol.15,No.1
Community and Space in Social Exclusion in Later Life
This article discusses the organisation of community care for older people in two rural
municipalities in Slovenia, which are contrasting in terms of “wellbeing” attained. The two case studies
are part of a wider research project on community care in the country, aiming to establish the typology
of institutional care for older people at the level of municipality. As a follow‑up to the initial research,
both cases assessed the typology “on the ground”. The various actors were selected by snowball sampling
and interviewed about past and present forms of caring for older people. Contrary to the typology, the results
of both cases show that institutional forms of care exist in both municipalities but differ in the field
of cooperation among various formal and informal local care‑practitioners. Care within families, still
the prevalent informal care provider in both communities, hides the financial inability of locals to use
some formal care services in their community. Uniform national standards for organisation of formal care
notwithstanding, the results show the communities’ peculiar adjustments to population ageing and their
partial integration into society.
community care; older people; rural setting; Slovenia
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