Some care places involve a person living in a communal setting. What factors can make this an institutional experience? How can such environments adopt a more person-centred approach? Discuss and illustrate with relevant examples from Block 4.
Living in groups requires individual social adaptation skills and a certain level of flexibility as life can be altered in many ways. The criteria of communal living are diverse and they all involve being able to adapt to new living conditions and relying on new people who can make life difficult or pleasant. In this essay, we will discuss the factors which can transform communal settings into an institutional experience by looking at history and also Lennox Castle and Cedar Court. Nevertheless, with time, and stronger expectations, health care has become more person centred and communal living environments changed and became better adapted to individual’s needs. Looking at a children’s hospital, an Extra Care option scheme and a home built for dementia patients will give us a solid insight of the changes geared to a person centred care approach.
Communal living involves a group of individuals living and sometimes working together, sharing social events and supporting each other at times. When communal living was first introduced in the early twentieth century, the general focus was to protect communities from health and social issues. In fact, the authorities believed that certain social behaviours, seen as negative, could be harmful for the settled communities and therefore it was decided to create communal living behind closed doors, or even locked doors and segregate various groups of people from the rest of society It was a drastic way to “remove” what was seen as any potential threat from society and have all the sick, the criminal, the “crazy” and unemployed locked away. (OU, Block 4, Unit 15, p100).