Against violence in elderly care

Violence in elderly care is a problem occurring in many European countries. According to the WHO, it is estimated that almost 16 % of people aged 60 and over are exposed to violent behaviour. This increase is expected in the context of a rapidly ageing population. Studies show that workers in social services don’t have the skills, knowledge and experience they need to detect violence in elderly care, either directly on the elderly people or on themselves. The aim of this project is to eliminate the occurrence of violence in elderly care through a vocational training program and a textbook. All activities that will lead to the creation of a vocational training program have been designed so the final program reflects not only needs of the target group, but also the specifics of individual countries that will be participating in the creation. The following activities will therefore lead to the development of vocational training program: a) national focus groups; b) investigation of the need between the target group and stakeholders; c) creation of a prefinal version of the vocational training program; d) piloting in partner countries; e) modification of the vocational education program based on feedback = final version. The target group for whom the vocational training program will be created are employees of social service providers. After completing the vocational training program, these people will be able to prevent, identify and respond to acts of violence under a unified framework. Four countries will be participating in the project, namely the Czech Republic (APSS ČR), Austria (SeneCura) France (FNAQPA), and Spain (LARES). The aim of the partnership is to bring together organisations expertizing in quality of education and organisations providing social care and representing the target group. Involvement of organisations with training capacity offers us a possibility to include a vocational training program in their curriculum, thus ensuring long-term sustainability even after the project is completed.