Social Work with the Elderly: Residential Care as an Example.

Abstract

The literature on social work practice with elderly people gives recognition to the social processes which constrain older people, but there is little attempt to identify the connections among socio-economic and political organisation, power relationships and disadvantage in old age. This paper asserts that social work with older people must begin with an analysis that focuses on the impact of class, gender and power relationships in structuring inequality in old age. Such an analysis promotes the development of intervention strategies, skills and activities to bring about both personal and structural change.

This paper presents a practice framework developed out of the experience of a social work student unit in a home for aged people. The principles of the framework can be applied to work with older people in any setting.