Conceptualising trust in aged care

Abstract

This article calls for a sociological understanding of the importance of trust to aged care. It connects existing theories of trust to empirical evidence from gerontology and nursing research. Trust is defined as a response to and management of social vulnerability. It is argued this makes trust a fundamental concept for understanding human service and social care institutions, including aged care. In light of Australia's Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, as well as generational shifts in consumer expectations and care ethics, the article highlights four distinct yet interrelated forms of trust: interpersonal, institutional, organisational and public trust. All of these forms are shown to be critical in conceptualising and evaluating the perceived trust deficit facing contemporary aged-care systems, and existing evidence shows how these forms of trust can reinforce, conflict and misalign with each other. Efforts to rebuild trust in aged care at an organisational and institutional level should ensure mechanisms facilitate rather than hinder the formation of interpersonal trust relations between individual service users, their families and aged care staff. Broader social policy reforms must also consider and address the way cultural understandings of ageing, and media representations of aged care, have diminished the public's trust in the sector, and how the cycle of scandals, reviews and piecemeal reforms contributes to this.

Building Trust in Post-Acute and Long-Term Care: Strategies for Sustainable Change

“…Residents who trust staff feel more at home and secure about their living location and care. 11 They are more comfortable with accepting help with toileting and bathing and more likely to communicate changes in their health, 19 whereas residents who do not have trust have increased depression and isolation. 19 For patients without family living nearby, staff become their family.…”

“…Promoting enhanced communication and transparency helps build public trust in nursing homes and can directly lead to staff pride, retention, and community support. 11 …”

Asiakasturvallisuus vanhuspalveluissa

“…Koodien perusteella muodostimme tulosluvun pääteemat: potilas-vai asiakasturvallisuus, turvallisuuskulttuuri, asuminen ja asuinympäristö ja teknologia. Analyysin viimeisessä vaiheessa reflektoimme teemoissa esitettyjä tuloksia suhteessa luottamuksen kolmeen ulottuvuuteen: yksilölliseen, institutionaaliseen ja organisatoriseen (Gilbert 2020).…”

Capturing the value and core concepts of the Clinical Research Nurse

“…Our model begins with care and trust (Figure 6) as these are fundamental underlying concepts that govern what we, as nurses, do (Gilbert, 2020; Adams, 2016).…”