Risks and Benefits of the Interactions between Social Workers and Mentally Disabled Clients

The work deals with the specifics of interactions between mentally disabled clients in the residential facilities providing institutional care, in particular with the relations between clients and social workers/carers. It analyses the role of interpersonal relations for individual´s inherent dignity, describes cultural and religious sources which recognise dignity of the mentally disabled in the contemporary society. It also strives to explain healthy ways of communication as an important and integral part of social interactions and how such methods can help to prevent conflicts in residential facilities. There is identification of risks of asymmetric relations between clients and carers due to the organisational hierarchy and the relevant changes brought about in the course of the deinstitutionalisation process. It provides various aspects of the relationship between employees and clients in traditional and alternative forms of residential facilities which in this particular case are represented by the Arch and Camphill communities. The Conclusions provide a summary of risks and benefits resulting from friendly attitude to mentally disabled clients and risks posed by the unequal and unnatural relations in residential facilities