Senior citizens and nursing home care: a study of the attitudes of paraprofessional workers toward the aged in selected nursing homes in Atlanta, 1988

The purpose of this study is to obtain and analyze data of selected independent variables (age, sex, race, income and education) and compare them with the dependent variable (attitude) of paraprofessional workers towards the elderly who reside in selected nursing homes in Atlanta, Georgia. The problem arises as a result of an increase in the older adult population, especially those 70 years of age and older. There is also an increased risk of physical and mental disorders focused primarily on the aged. With these changes, added factors are the many social changes which take place in the lives of the elderly. There is a diminished social network, loss of friends, spouses, relatives, jobs, and for many, a change of residences. As a result, most elderly are having to chose nursing homes as a means of meeting their physical and social needs. Because of inadequate training, a lack of interest and low salaries, the elderly are left to be cared for by paraprofessional workers in nursing homes who are often insensitive to their needs. This negative attitude provides a level of service that renders the elderly dependent because of a gross reduction in the quality of health care. It can therefore be stated that there exists a relationship between attitude and the demographic factors of the professional workers. Twelve (12) nursing homes in Atlanta, Georgia were randomly selected. However, six (6) of the twelve (12) nuursing homes responded. A survey questionnaire of forty (40) items was disseminated to four hundred (400) paraprofessional workers with one hundred eighty-one (181) or 45% returned. The data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences X Bach System. Chi Square was used to test the relationship between the variables, at confidence level of .05. The results of this study were summarized as follows: as paraprofessionals grow older their attitudes tend to be more favorable; female paraprofessionals tend to have more favorable attitudes toward the elderly than males; as income and education levels increase, paraprofessionals1 attitudes toward the elderly grow more unfavorable; 85% of the paraprofessionals in selected nursing homes were Black; and paraprofessionals who were married tend to have more favorable attitudes towards the elderly