Course Objectives

MODULE 4: The organisation and exercise of health and social services for the elderly
Module 4 stresses the exercise, various approaches (methods) and work routines, as well as research and professional development in practice.

MODULE 4a
The organisation of health and social services for the elderly - 12 ECTS

Module 4a primarily focuses on: the organisation of health and social services and quality-development. The theoretical instruction in module 4a will take place during two one-week sessions in the 3rd semester.

Objectives:

The students will acquire an understanding of the laws and regulations, their organisation and content with respect to various health and social services which are particularly relevant to the elderly. This involves a further development of knowledge related to their own professional field and a greater understanding of other related professions. This will improve the students’ ability to evaluate the organisational and structural conditions which must be in place to ensure that the elderly receive the services which they need and are entitled to. The students will thus increase their competence in coordinating, planning and executing health and social services and thereby improving quality of life for the elderly. The students will train their skills in planning, documenting and evaluating their own work. They will increase their understanding of the significance of a professionally oriented environment, and regard it from a social-economy perspective. In this way, the students will increase their ability to maintain and develop health and social services of high professional quality, and to avoid exhaustion, sick leave or cynicism with respect to themselves, colleagues and relatives. The students should demonstrate their ability to think creatively in cooperation with the elderly and to be constructively critical to their own professional efforts.

MODULE 4b
Practice of health and social services for the elderly - 15 ECTS

The theoretical instruction will take place during three one-week sessions during the 3rd and 4th semesters.

Objectives:

The students will improve their insight into the work methods of other professional groups, into various approaches (methods) and into the possibilities related to interdisciplinary cooperation in providing health and social services to the elderly. They will increase their understanding of the relationship between values and professional practice, and thereby the relationship between professional ethical standards and the quality of the services provided. The students will develop insight into how the users can contribute to the shaping of the services, and on various approaches to relatives. The students will also learn to appreciate the importance of various types of knowledge, and how these may be developed and applied in practice. In this way, the students will improve and refine their skills in the practice of professional health and social services for the elderly.

Course Description

MODULE 4a
The organisation of health and social services for the elderly – 12 ECTS. 3rd semester.

The organisation of health and social services

• Coordination between different services/different departments
• The relationship between the specialist and the municipal health services
• Home-based, institution-based and integrated services
• Prioritising and ethical dilemmas
• Resource and solution-orientation
• Family care, voluntary organisations
• Important laws, regulations and agreements
• Professional leadership

Quality development

• Strategies for change
• Documentation
• Evaluation and developmental initiatives
• Planning and executing projects in practice
• Competence development for personnel
• Training and guidance
• Work environments

Creating a project plan

MODULE 4b
Practice of health and social services for the elderly - 15 ECTS, 3rd and 4th semesters

Professional practices, various approaches (methods) and work-routines

• Different work-groups and their professional approaches to work with the elderly
• Professional ethics
• User approaches - active environment-directed care
• Consideration for relatives
• Cooperation with relatives

Research and professional development

• Research and professional development before and during the training period
• Application of research-based knowledge and results

Specialisation assignment/project

Assessment Methods

987MOD4
Module 4: Quality development in work with the elderly

During the autumn and spring semesters in the 2nd year of study, the students will work with a specialisation assignment associated with one of the selected specialisation topics of the programme. The specialisation assignment including an oral defence will constitute the final examination of the programme. The specialisation assignment shall have a length of about 5000 words. The assignment will be evaluated with a grade.

Minor adjustments may occur during the academic year, subject to the decision of the Dean