THE METHOD OF PERSONAL PLANNING AND THE IMPLEMENTATION OF SERVICES IN SOCIAL WORK WITH OLDER PEOPLE

Due to demographic changes, social work with older people has been confronted with great challenges. It is essential to respond to them professionally, in a way adapted to the concepts and guidelines of social work. The method of personal planning and implementation of services is very important in this context. This method is present in the international context of social work; therefore its development and practice are discussed in this contribution from the perspective of providing personalisation and user perspective. Personalisation, user perspective and participation are the concepts followed by contemporary social policies, but in long-term care they represent the foundations of the paradigm shift in care. In social work, the concepts mentioned are key starting points to substantiate the provision of professional help that is ensured with the very method of personal planning and implementation of services. The specific features of this method in social work shall be presented in the case of older people, and we shall draw attention to issues that represent our weaker points in providing personalisation and empowerment of older people. Following the example of the use of this method in institutional care for older people in Slovenia, we shall show the nature of changes emerging from this method in the life of the residents and the operation of institutions. For the future, the method of personal planning and implementation of services is seen as the central principle of social work that separates professional social work from other disciplines, giving it a central role in the empowerment of older people and providing autonomous decision-making in the helping process.