2017 Volume 82 Issue 739 Pages 2217-2226
1 Purpose
We have revealed the process of planning of the support-center for the elderly in our previous article. This study is to find how visitors spend time in the support-center and why they visit in order to consider what support-center for the elderly should be.
2 Research Methodology
Support-centers are classified into four types according to their supplying services. They are “Day Care Service Center Type”, “Salon and Consultation Center Type”, “Elderly Dwelling House Type” and “Community Center Type”. We investigated support-center K and H of “Day Care Service Center Type” and support-center T and M of “Salon and Consultation Center Type” on a weekday and a weekend from November 10 to December 16, 2012. We described the behavior of visitors and staff after recording their arrival and departure time and interviewed the staff. The descriptive surveys were conducted to record the visitors' and staff's places to stay on the map, their behaviors, their conversations and social interactions every 15minutes.
3 Actual Condition of Support-center
Four support-centers are located in each temporary housing estate. The visitors consist of residents of temporary housing, neighbors and children.
Support-center K and H supplies day care service on weekday. On weekend, visitors come as they like and enjoy talking and tea. In support-center T and M, tea was always prepared as well. Some events, for example gymnastic exercises for elderly and English conversation for children, were held a few times a week.
Almost all the visitors of support-center H and M were elderly while we observed some children and young female visitors in support-center K and T, who were mothers watching over their children playing inside. Some intellectual disabilities and a mentally unstable caused by earthquake sometimes visited support-center K, T and M, so that support-centers seem to play a role of safety nets for them in emergencies.
4 Staying Time and Motive for Visit
Most of visitors of support-center M stayed for more than 30 minutes while staying time of other centers are uneven. Visitors staying for more than 30 minutes were attending events, checking own blood pressure or relaxing in a massaging chair. Visitors staying for less than 30 minutes dropped by for small matters like saying hello.
5 Social Interaction Mode
Visitors' social interactions are classified into 3 modes which are “visitors and staff”, “only visitors” and “indirect”. In support-center K and H, interaction between visitors and staff often occurred because they have day care service. Support-center T and M do not supply a day care service either, however, the tendency of social interaction mode was opposite. The interaction between visitors and staff always occurred in support-center T while visitors interacted each other and staff only watched over them in support-center M.
6 Conclusion and Discussion
The visitors' interaction without staff is more independent than the one with staff in terms of recovery of their community, however other support-centers are not necessarily bad because it is effective that staff change how to interact with visitors depending on the progress of the recovery. Also, enough space for staff is necessary in order to prevent staff from staying in the space for visitors.
