Improving Life Satisfaction for the Elderly Living Independently in the Community: Care Recipients' Perspective of Volunteers

Abstract

With an aging population who wish to remain living in the community, this article explores the experiences and benefits of receiving volunteer services from a home support program established to assist people with increasing needs to remain living independently. Face to face interviews explored how the services of informal carers (volunteers) provided through the program made a difference to the daily lives of 16 recipients. Improved life satisfaction was identified through the themes of being helped with daily activities, positive human contact, and fear of a poorer quality of life. It was found that addressing recipients' social, emotional, and mobility needs supported them to remain living at home.

Keywords:

• informal carers
• volunteers
• home support
• community care
• social support
• qualitative research

Acknowledgments

The reported study was a joint investigation by St. John Ambulance South Australia, Inc. and the School of Nursing, University of Adelaide, Australia. The funding for this study was provided by a St. John Ambulance South Australia Inc. research grant.