Chair of Long-Term Care

Head of chair: Jana Mali ...

In the last decade, everything related to old age, old people and ageing was placed in the new field of long-term care, both in the professional and general public spheres. In addition to demographic changes, the increasing number of people with chronic disease, long-term psychological, mental and social distress, disabilities and various impairments that require long-term help or support from others in order to live independently, the reasons for the emergence of long-term care are also rooted in the processes of deinstitutionalisation and the need to develop community-oriented care. Both deinstitutionalisation and community care have traditionally occupied an important place in the development of the science and profession of social work at the Faculty, which is why long-term care, as a parallel phenomenon, is a significant area of faculty development.

The Chair of Long-Term Care combines various areas of faculty activity, spanning from teaching, project work and research to international cooperation and professional development. By introducing specialised knowledge of long-term care into the social work curricula of the 1st and the 2nd cycle, we aim to introduce students to an in-depth and independent study of social work with old people, to train them in specialised social work with old people in the community, in institutions for old people, and for counselling in preparation for old age for all the generations who are just entering the process of ageing. The study enables students to learn and understand the contemporary theoretical concepts and practices in the field of social work with older people and their application in concrete practical work.

The Chair runs national and international projects related to long-term care. Since 2012, the International Postgraduate Programme Working with Old Age, a part of the School of Social Work Theory and Practice, has been running at the Inter University Centre, Dubrovnik, Croatia. Annually, a one-week training programme is organised that brings together international scholars, experts and students to develop the science and profession of social work, to exchange experiences in scientific research and practice, and to foster new forms of international cooperation.

We have published several scientific monographs and articles on long-term care. In the area of scientific monographs, the following pentology is the most recognised: